This judge is not messing around when it comes to Donald Trump
Judge Tanya Chutkan certainly understands the meaning of “expeditious.” After turning down Trump’s request for a stay in his case, she promptly ruled against him on the overall merits of the case. Her statement says it all: “But Presidents are not kings, and Plaintiff is not President.” Got that, Trump? Judge Chutkan’s ruling is not that surprising. She early on compared the issue to Watergate, which was nowhere near as egregious as the attack on the Capitol. This ruling also aligns with President Biden’s refusal to grant executive privilege over these documents on Trump’s behalf. The public interest far outweighs any harm Trump might suffer, though we know he will suffer none other than his bruised ego. Not surprisingly, it took Trump’s lawyer less than two hours to file an appeal, which will never be heard in time to stop the National Archies from releasing documents Friday.
Speaking of President Joe Biden, Judge Chutkan mentioned him in her ruling, saying that he “has already spoken” on the matter. She also shut the door on Trump’s claim that the committee was on a fishing expedition by stating that the committee needs to “study the events that led to and occurred on January 6, and to consider legislation to prevent such events from ever occurring again,” according to Huffington Post. The judge further addressed Trump’s public behavior prior to the event in detail, basically shaming him for his ridiculous behavior. She even quoted him in the order when he told the rally attendees to “fight like hell.”
This type of behavior was and still is so shameful for a president, but then, Donald Trump was never a real president. Instead of doing the right thing and calling these rioters what they were—terrorists—he and his allies want to paint Ashli Babbitt as a martyr. No, she was a terrorist who was shot down to protect our lawmakers. Trump never does and never will do the right thing, but Bennie Thompson wants him to put on his big boy panties.
Thompson appeared with Chris Cuomo on CNN. As he told Cuomo, the committee has the law on its side to continue its investigation. Thompson told Cuomo that “we are a nation of laws and if you take your issue to court and lose, you need to man up and deal with it and not be a spoiled brat.” Thompson is correct: Trump is a spoiled brat, and he is not much of a man. He is a coward and a bully, but he obviously cannot bully the judiciary. Thompson even mentioned being able to view the numerous retakes of the video in which Trump finally asked his followers to leave the Capitol and go home.
Being a proverbial fly on Trump’s wall after this ruling would be priceless. He is likely having a full-blown conniption fit, but if we know anything about him, he will not simply roll over. It will be interesting to see what all comes out of these documents, but it remains to be seen what he will do next to continue to try to block their release.
Shirley is a former entertainment writer and has worked in the legal field for over 25 years