Trump lawyers seek recusal of judge in DC presiding over federal election subversion case

5 AT 530. WELL, FORMER PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP WILL GO BEFORE A FEDERAL JUDGE IN WASHINGTON, D.C. TOMORROW AFTERNOON CHARGED WITH CONSPIRACY TO OVERTURN THE 2020 ELECTION. A SPECIAL COUNSEL, JACK SMITH, POINTING TO THE JANUARY SIXTH STORMING OF THE CAPITOL AS A DIRECT RESULT OF THE FORMER PRESIDENT’S ACTIONS. WITH US NOW, OUR LEGAL EXPERT, GREG HENNING OF HENNING STRATEGIES. GREG, THANKS FOR JOINING US. OF COURSE, THIS IS THE FORMER PRESIDENT’S THIRD INDICTMENT IN SOME FOUR MONTHS. MANY HAVE SAID IT’S THE MOST SERIOUS. DO YOU AGREE? I DO THINK HE’S FACING THE MOST SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES IN FEDERAL COURT, BOTH IN FLORIDA AND IN WASHINGTON, WHERE THE PROCESS BEGINS TOMORROW. BUT IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THIS IS DEFINITELY THE MOST HISTORIC. IT GOES TO THE CORE SYSTEMS THAT WE TEACH KIDS IN CIVICS CLASSES IN GRADE SCHOOL, CERTIFYING ELECTIONS AND THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE AND ENSURING THAT THERE’S A PEACEFUL TRANSITION TO POWER. AND HE’S NOW BEING CHARGED WITH ATTACKING THOSE VERY SYSTEMS THAT ARE AT THE CORE OF THE AMERICAN DEMOCRACY. ALL RIGHT. THIS LATEST INDICTMENT WAS JUST HANDED UP YESTERDAY, BUT IS THERE A POSSIBILITY THIS CASE MIGHT ACTUALLY GO TO TRIAL FIRST? AND IF SO, WHY? WELL, THERE’S A POSSIBILITY FOR SURE. I THINK THE TRUMP DEFENSE TEAM IS GOING TO TRY TO DRAG ALL OF THE CASES OUT AS LONG AS POSSIBLE. BUT THE CASE IN FLORIDA, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS FILED FIRST, HAS MUCH MORE COMPLICATED ISSUES FOR DISCOVERY BECAUSE OF THE NATIONAL SECURITY ISSUES INVOLVED IN THOSE DOCUMENTS. THE CASE IN D.C. IS LARGELY BASED ON TESTIMONY FROM WITNESSES, MANY OF WHOM HAVE ALREADY TESTIFIED IN THE GRAND JURY AGAINST THE FORMER PRESIDENT. SO YOU COULD GET THAT CASE TO TRIAL SOONER BECAUSE IT’S LESS COMPLICATED IN TERMS OF THE DISCOVERY PROCEDURES. OKAY. SO TALKING ABOUT THOSE DOCUMENTS, THAT CASE, AGAIN, CENTERED IN FLORIDA. THE JUDGE WAS APPOINTED BY TRUMP. THE NEW CASE, IT CENTERED IN D.C. AND THE JUDGE IN THIS CASE WAS APPOINTED BY FORMER PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA. SO SHE’S ISSUED TOUGH SENTENCES FOR JANUARY 6TH. THE RIOTERS. HOW DIFFICULT COULD THIS BE FOR THE TRUMP DEFENSE TEAM, GIVEN THE JUDGE? WELL, THE JUDGE CERTAINLY HAS ISSUED THOSE DIFFICULT SENTENCES FOR THE DEFENDANTS, BUT PERHAPS MORE IMPORTANTLY FOR THE DEFENSE TEAM, FOR THE FORMER PRESIDENT, SHE HAS A ACUTE UNDERSTANDING AND AWARENESS OF THE DISCOVERY ISSUES AND THE EVIDENTIARY ISSUES ON THE JANUARY SIXTH ATTACKS. SHE’S HEARD THE BACKGROUND. SHE’S HEARD ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING ON, AND SHE’S LIKELY TO BE LESS FOOLED BY ANY SORT OF ARGUMENTS THAT THERE WAS NOT A RIOT AND THERE WAS NOT AN ATTEMPTED INSURRECTION. SO I THINK THAT THE LANDSCAPE IS DEFINITELY DIFFICULT FOR THE FORMER PRESIDENT. SO WE KNOW, AS YOU MENTIONED, SHE’S PRESIDED OVER A NUMBER OF THESE FOLKS INVOLVED. THEIR TRIALS WITH JANUARY SIXTH, IF CONVICTED HERE, THE FORMER PRESIDENT COULD FACE YEARS IN PRISON. WOULD THAT HAPPEN RIGHT AWAY? AND CAN YOU SEE THAT HAPPENING, FRANKLY? SO IF HE’S CONVICTED AND THAT’S A BIG IF, IT STILL NEEDS TO GET TO A TRIAL AND CONVINCE 12 PEOPLE BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT. BUT IF THAT WERE TO HAPPEN, THERE ARE MANY APPELLATE PROCEDURES THAT THE FORMER PRESIDENT’S TEAM WOULD DRAG OUT IN ORDER TO PROLONG THIS PROCESS. AND I THINK THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT HE COULD BE CONVICTED, BUT ALSO NEVER ACTUALLY SPEND A DAY IN PRISON GIVEN HIS AGE AND THE LENGTH OF TIME THAT APPEALS CAN DRAG ON. OKAY, GREG HENNING. GREG, THANK YOU SO