This president is influencing a new generation of criminals and thugs.
Recall when Donald Trump was waging his ridiculous lawsuit against his own government and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) over the release of his tax returns.
The Department of Justice did not even enter an appearance let alone raise a defense to this $10 billion lawsuit.
On behalf of the US government, his personal attorney Todd Blanche, then acting Attorney General and now Attorney General, settled the case and dismissed the lawsuit before the court could even consider it.
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Trump and family were given complete tax immunity for all prior- and future-year audits, said to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars to the Trump family.
The president also got a slush fund of $1.776 billion so Trump could pay off those criminals who stormed the U.S. Capitol, assaulting police, destroying property and committing an insurrection.
Seriously, is this man really in charge of this country?
Trump’s suit against the IRS was filed in Florida where he thought he might get an advantage and aspects of it are still ongoing. The court is examining a determination of sanctions to be imposed against lawyers who colluded in this non-suit suit and attempted to make a mockery of the judicial system.
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Even last week, a magistrate judge issued an order requiring disclosure of the identities of all attorneys involved in this case, supposedly for the purposes of determining whether sanctions should be imposed.
The court has not closed the case; it remains active.
In July, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams held that Trump’s lawsuit was filed in bad faith and that the court did not have jurisdiction over the non-suit because there was, in reality, only one party to the collusive $10 billion action.
My God, what a piece of work Trump truly is.
In other words, she was saying that in a collusive non-adversarial lawsuit with only one party, there is no question as to who will prevail. And, for this reason, there is no constitutional standing to bring the action in the federal court.
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Before the DOJ even entered an appearance, the case was settled, and the suit was dismissed. This was done to avoid responding to an order issued by the judge requiring the DOJ to set out its intended defenses. God forbid Trump‘s personal lawyer would defend his bosses’ suit on behalf of the government.
Blanche subsequently told Congress in confirmation hearings that the slush fund was dead, although I don’t believe he would put it in writing. Not that it mattered because Trump later said that the concept was not dead.
In the court’s order, the judge forbade the parties from calling their collusive agreement, a “settlement,” casting substantial doubt on whether it was a valid contract, supported by sufficient legal consideration.
I suppose this ruling would give third parties the leverage to challenge the implementation of the immunity or the slush fund. However, there’s no question that this Internal Revenue Service will not audit the Trumps while he is in office.
Judge Williams found that the suit had only been filed to give a subsequent settlement the cloak of legitimacy when there was none. She stripped it of that legitimacy with her ruling.
Now Trump has filed an appeal to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.
And suddenly, Trump‘s DOJ has awoken. Blanche has shown a public interest in this case that never existed. He is seeking to have Judge Williams removed from the case, something that would substantially benefit Trump.
And remember, Blanche is supposed to be representing the citizens of this country.
The DOJ’s initial failure to enter an appearance or defend the suit was mostly the basis for the Judge’s finding of collusion, but now here comes Blanche pushing Trump’s agenda after the judge ruled against Trump.
Try as you will this is impossible to reconcile.
The DOJ is now openly on Trump‘s side, seeking a pause of sanctions against Trump‘s poor mistreated lawyers. It is now appealing, for the benefit of Trump, even though the “real“ DOJ would have applauded the imposition of all those holdings as a win.
But when your master is breathing fire down your neck, it is hardly a win, especially for the saddled and bridled Todd Blanche.
Oh, how can Blanche stand the weight of jumbo Trump riding his back, or worse, riding him from behind?
Anyway, it is likely the 11th circuit will find that Trump‘s appeal jumped the gun, that Judge Williams is still considering this matter, proceeding through sanctions, identifying lawyers and determining what to impose against them.
It will be amusing, maybe revolting is more appropriate, to watch Blanche and his DOJ argue on behalf of Trump when in essence the DOJ inadvertently won without lifting a finger.
Jim Astrachan is lawyer who represents clients in intellectual property law and litigation, mediation, and business, regulatory, and transactional matters. He’s a Life Fellow of the Baltimore City Bar Foundation, the Maryland Bar Foundation, and the American Bar Foundation.