The search, which was the result of an investigation into whether Trump and his associates were wrongfully took and spent on to secret government documents as a result in opening of numerous secret documents. Trump’s lawyers then asked for a special Master to check everything of approximately 11,000 seized documents and excluding those that may be subject to attorney-client or executive secrecy. U.S. District Judge Eileen M. Cannon agreed to the request and banned criminal investigators from using in material before review completed. The Department of Justice disputed parts of Cannon decision and went to the US court in Atlanta of Appeals for 11th arrondissement to cancel it.
The amicus opinion calls on the appellate court to dismiss the appeal. “Given the trail of Biden’s record, combined with his demonizing rhetoric anyone he does not agree with the courts to be on high track readiness in which the [the Justice Department] may abuse his power punish President Donald Trump,” Paxton, whose office led the work, said in announcement on Tuesday.
The Utah Attorney General’s Office confirmed that the state joined amicus briefly but declined to comment farther. Representatives of other lawyers general did not respond to inquiries for comment.
Officials in the Department of Justice cannot be immediately served late Tuesday evening.
Amicus summaries are documents filed by parties not directly involved in legal competition to inform judges of supplementary, up-to-date information. But one filed by lawyers general is reading more like a political document, not a legal brief, legal experts say.
Lawyers general from Texas, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Louisiana, South Carolina, Utah, and West Virginia do not specify on Top Legal Issues Trump Disputes – Executive Privilege and Documents found on his estate in Florida were effectively classified – according to John Yu, a legal expert on executive privilege who reviewed the briefing at the request of The Washington Post.
term “executive privilege” only mentioned once in feed, and the text does not provide new information what could help determine whether government the documents found Trump property are classified. The privilege is usually used to shield executive branch messages from Congress or the courts, not from an agency within the branch itself, such as the Department of Justice.
Instead, Republican Party officials list wide range of resentment against Biden administration, including how he was involved in securing immigration law and its response to the coronavirus pandemic, which do not appear directly related to the case. They claim that the “questionable behavior” of the administration in policy making and litigation means courts should treat DOJ appeal with caution.
officials who signed the brief, “really good lawyers,” Yu said. who worked in Department of Justice of the George W. Bush Administration. But a brief is a political document that “just does not apply to any of issues to be resolved,” he said.
Paxton previously used his office to intervene in courts on on behalf of of Trump and others on the right causes. In 2020, Texas attempted to sue Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania. over presidential election 2020, in a far-sighted attempt to nullify Joe Biden’s victory. The Supreme Court dismissed the case.
Short description “of Of course, this is a political stunt,” said John D. Michaels, legal professor in university of California in Los Angeles who studies presidential powers. “The officials are playing to the ferocious MAGA bases in their states,” he said.
Paxton office failed to contact immediately for comment late Tuesday.
Perry Stein and Devlin Barrett contributed to this report.