Donald Trump Stung by Two Court Losses in One Day

U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon on Thursday denied a motion by Donald Trump to dismiss the classified documents case against him on the grounds the papers were considered personal under the Presidential Records Act.

Her decision came hours after Judge Scott McAfee issued a ruling denying Trump's attempts to have the election interference charges against him in Georgia dropped, citing the First Amendment.

Cannon wrote that the charges Trump was seeking to have dismissed "make no reference to the Presidential Records Act, nor do they rely on that statute for purposes of stating an offense."

She added that due to "these reasons, accepting the allegations of the Superseding Indictment as true, the Presidential Records Act does not provide a pre-trial basis to dismiss."

Newsweek reached out to a representative for Trump via email for comment.

Meanwhile, in what was seen as a victory for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in her ongoing legal battle against Trump, McAfee wrote in the order he issued that "without foreclosing the ability to raise similar as-applied challenges at the appropriate time after the establishment of a factual record, the Defendants' motions based on First Amendment grounds are denied."

"The Defendants seek to dismiss the indictment on as-applied and facial First Amendment ground," the order said. "They argue this prosecution violates the First Amendment's protections of political speech and activity, freedom of association, and the right to petition Congress as-applied to their alleged conduct, and further contend that the indicted charges are overbroad."

Trump has continued to deny any wrongdoing in both cases.

The Context

Trump was previously indicted by Willis's office on charges relating to alleged election interference in Georgia following the 2020 presidential election. Trump and 18 co-defendants were also accused of violating Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.

In the case overseen by Cannon, Trump is accused of illegally retaining classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and obstructing attempts by federal officials to retrieve them.

What We Know

Last week, Trump's legal team argued for the charges against him to be dismissed in Fulton County.

"There is nothing alleged factually against President Trump that is not political speech," Steve Sadow, Trump's attorney, said.

Earlier this week, Jack Smith, the chief prosecutor in the classified documents case, objected to Cannon's proposed instructions to the jury suggesting that Trump may have had a legal right under the Presidential Records Act to declare presidential records as personal property after leaving office.

Smith wrote to Cannon, a Trump appointee, stating that her proposed instructions risked "distort[ing] the trial" that Trump is facing in Florida.

Views

In a statement to Newsweek on Thursday, Sadow said: "President Trump and other defendants respectfully disagree with Judge McAfee's order and will continue to evaluate their options regarding the First Amendment challenges. It is significant that the court's ruling made clear that defendants were not foreclosed from again raising their 'as-applied challenges at the appropriate time after the establishment of a factual record."

Writing on X (formerly Twitter) about Cannon's decision, legal analyst Joyce Vance called the move "a big loss for Trump, delivered through the skillful legal maneuvering of the special counsel."

"Not only did the judge [Cannon] face the certain prospect of removal. If Smith, asked the circuit to force her to rule or appealed a ruling in Trump's favor, the 11th Circuit could have ordered her recusal," Vance added. "That's off the table, at least for now."

What's Next

Willis has asked for the election interference trial to start as soon as August, but McAfee has not set a date.

The classified documents trial was originally scheduled to begin next month, but Cannon is expected to delay the start.

Update 04/04/24 4:55 p.m. ET: This story has been updated to include more information.