Clarence Thomas Wrote Note ‘Obviously Intended’ for Aileen Cannon: Attorney

Amid Hunter Biden‘s recent motions to dismiss the federal cases against him, legal analyst and attorney Glenn Kirschner on Friday pointed towards a note Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that was “obviously intended” for Judge Aileen Cannon.

Cannon, who was appointed to the bench by Donald Trump in 2020, recently dismissed the former president’s classified documents case arguing that Department of Justice (DOJ) special counsel Jack Smith‘s appointment was unconstitutional and that her decision was supported by Thomas’ opinion in the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity case. The Court’s July 1 decision said that former presidents have broad immunity from criminal prosecution.

On Wednesday, Smith filed a notice of appeal of Cannon’s ruling writing, “The United States of America hereby gives notice that it appeals to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit from the order of the District Court entered on July 15, 2024, Docket Entry 672.”

In addition, the special counsel’s office said in a statement on Monday: “The dismissal of the case deviates from the uniform conclusion of all previous courts to have considered the issue that the Attorney General is statutorily authorized to appoint a Special Counsel.”

Since the dismissal, Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, is seeking to have both cases against him dismissed with the new motions arguing Cannon’s ruling. Hunter Biden was convicted by a Delaware jury last month on three felony counts related to possession of a gun while using narcotics. He is appealing the verdict. He is also awaiting trial in Los Angeles federal court on federal tax crime charges.

Speaking on his YouTube channel on Friday, Kirschner, a former assistant U.S. attorney and frequent Trump critic, pointed towards a note that Thomas had written in his separate concurrence regarding the immunity ruling.

“Clarence Thomas wrote a little note that he obviously intended for Judge Cannon saying, ‘Hey judge Cannon, you might want to look into the appointment of special counsel thing. I think maybe there’s an issue there that could help Donald Trump.’ In substance that’s what Clarence Thomas communicated to judge Cannon,” Kirschner said.

Newsweek has reached out to the Supreme Court via online form for comment.

Cannon’s ruling on Monday followed arguments that Thomas laid out earlier this month when he wrote in a solo concurring opinion: “The lower courts should thus answer these essential questions concerning the special counsel’s appointment before proceeding. If this unprecedented prosecution [of Trump] is to proceed, it must be conducted by someone duly authorized to do so by the American people.”

In his opinion, which was not joined by any of the Court’s other justices, Thomas said he chose to write separately “to highlight another way in which this prosecution may violate our constitutional structure.

“In this case, the Attorney General purported to appoint a private citizen as Special Counsel to prosecute a former President on behalf of the United States. But, I am not sure that any office for the Special Counsel has been ‘established by law,’ as the Constitution requires,” Thomas argued.

Meanwhile, Smith responded to Thomas’ opinion in a court filing earlier this month, calling out the justice for questioning his legitimacy when he said that “the Attorney General is statutorily authorized to appoint a Special Counsel.”

This comes as Hunter Biden’s lawyers filed a pair of motions arguing for dismissal, “Guided by Justice Thomas’ opinion, Judge Cannon dismissed an indictment against President Trump earlier this week because the Special Counsel was unconstitutionally appointed,” Abbe Lowell, an attorney for Hunter Biden wrote.

“Based on these new legal developments, Mr. Biden moves to dismiss the indictment brought against him because the Special Counsel who initiated this prosecution was appointed in violation of the Appointments Clause as well,” according to Hunter Biden’s legal team.

However, according to Kirschner on Friday, Hunter Biden’s motions “are destined to fail,” citing that Cannon’s ruling is “bad” and should be rejected by other federal judges.

“I’m not surprised Hunter Biden’s lawyers made these motions, but I think they are destined to fail because what Judge Cannon did in Donald Trump’s classified documents case, tossed it out, ruled that special counsel is not a thing, not only doesn’t have any precedential value anywhere else, its a bad ruling. It’s a bad ruling and it should be rejected and I suspect it will be rejected by all federal judges who have occasion to take up that issue,” he said.