Judge Aileen Cannon is facing renewed calls for her removal after she dismissed the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump in Florida.
Legal commentators are calling for Cannon to be removed from her position as a federal judge after she delivered a stunning blow to Special Counsel Jack Smith on Monday, finding that his appointment was improper because it was not based on a specific federal statute and because he was not named to the position by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Weissmann told MSNBC that even though the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals or the U.S. Supreme Court could remedy Cannon’s dismissal, her ruling also presented “an opportunity for the 11th Circuit to remove Judge Cannon if they think that this is a particularly frivolous ground.”
Southern District of Florida
“Raise your hand if you agree Aileen Cannon should be EXPELLED from the bench and Jack Smith should immediately appeal to the 11th Circuit!!” attorney Joe Gallina said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
Legal observers have pointed out that Cannon’s ruling would likely be reversed on appeal because for nearly 30 years, special counsels have been appointed by the attorney general.
“Judge Cannon dismissed decades of institutional precedent, years of recent rulings on Mueller and Smith, and pretty much the entire premise of the special counsel regulations,” national security attorney Bradley P. Moss tweeted. “Her ultimate complaint? Jack Smith is TOO independent.”
“The fix is in. As I pointed out here over a year ago, Judge Cannon should have been booted off this case at the outset,” wrote Richard Painter, who previously served as the chief White House ethics lawyer in the George W. Bush administration.
“Aileen Cannon is a disgrace to the law and to America,” said Norman Ornstein, a senior fellow emeritus at the American Enterprise Institute.
Monday’s dismissal is the latest controversy surrounding Cannon, who has nominated to the federal bench by Trump and has been widely criticized for her handling of the case.
She made a number of unusual decisions since being assigned to the case in June 2023, having granted a special master at Trump’s request—a decision that was later struck down by the 11th Circuit—and delaying dozens of proceedings. She also issued a host of paperless orders instead of issuing a substantive ruling, a move that has prevented Smith from going to the appeals court.
Former U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade told MSNBC that the dismissal of the case could be a “blessing in disguise” since it required Cannon to actually issue a ruling, and thus give Smith the chance to appeal “immediately.”
“So many of these other decisions were within the judge’s discretion as she was slow walking the case, but this is one where it’s immediately appealable and I think she’s so wrong on the law that the 11th Circuit will reverse,” McQuade said.
Newsweek reached out to Cannon by phone for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.