CNN
—
On Thursday, the Supreme Court denied former President Donald Trump’s urgent request to intervene in a dispute over classified documents seized from his Mar-a-Lago mansion in August.
Trump had asked the judge to overturn the federal appeals court ruling and allow a special master to review about 100 classified documents. in a criminal case.
However, with a short order, the court denied the request. There were no notable objections.
For now, the documentation is out of reach of a special master.
At a time when the conservative court’s 6-to-3 approval rating has slumped to new lows and liberals, including President Joe Biden, are attacking the institution’s legitimacy, the court’s decision has pulled the court out of political strife. keep away. The order was issued during a hearing of a House Select Committee investigation into the January 6, 2021 attacks on the US Capitol.
The Justice Department called the records “extremely sensitive” and asked courts not to join the dispute while legal challenges were pending.
“As this court stresses, courts should be cautious before ‘claiming review’ of records whose disclosure could endanger national security,” DOJ said earlier this week. I wrote this by citing past cases.
At issue are two orders recently issued by U.S. District Judge Eileen Cannon. She authorized a special master to review seized materials, including those with classified markings. was temporarily banned by the Department of Justice.
However, the panel of judges of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, at the request of the Department of Justice, agreed to freeze some of these orders pending legal disputes.
Trump claims that as a former president, he may have had the right to own certain government documents, including those that could contain the country’s most sensitive secrets. , alleging that the Court of Appeals had exceeded its powers by handing down the judgment against him.
“The 11th Circuit lacked the jurisdiction to review, much less suspend, a district court interlocutory order providing for a special master to review materials seized from President Trump’s home,” Trump said last week. told to
Trump’s team said special judge-appointed U.S. senior judge Raymond Deary was “substantially impaired” by the appeals court’s order, slowing “time-sensitive work in progress.” added.
“Any restriction on a comprehensive and transparent investigation of materials seized in an unusual raid on the president’s home undermines public confidence in our system,” the filing reads.
U.S. Attorney General Elizabeth Preloger said the Trump-appointed Canon was “fundamentally wrong” in appointing a special master in the first place, noting that the Justice Department is appealing that decision in lower courts. .
DOJ said in its filing that the Court of Appeals for the 11th Federal Circuit found that Cannon “abused her discretion” and “gravely compromised the executive branch’s authority to control the use and distribution of highly sensitive government records.” and claimed to have committed an unjustified intrusion.
Cannon’s decision to block the DOJ’s access to classified documents seized from Mar-a-Lago undermines the DOJ’s ability to address the matter and gives Trump a runway to strengthen his defense. gave
The DOJ said Trump’s Supreme Court application “restricts the executive branch from using its own highly classified records in ongoing criminal investigations and disseminates those records outside the executive branch.” It concerns an unprecedented order by a district court that directs.” review. ”
This story has been updated with additional details.