Judge Says Election ‘Not Relevant’ to Setting Trial Date

“The imminent presidential election will have no bearing on the schedule of Donald Trump’s criminal proceedings for seeking to subvert the last one, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan vowed Thursday,” Politico reports.

Said Chutkan: “The electoral process and the timing of the election… is not relevant here. This court is not concerned with the electoral schedule.”

“During her first significant foray into the case since a fight over presidential immunity reached the Supreme Court and waylaid the proceedings for nine months, Chutkan declined to consider setting a new trial date, calling it an ‘exercise in futility.’ Numerous pretrial disputes first need to be resolved, and both sides say they expect another appeal to freeze the case once again.”

“However, Chutkan appeared inclined to give prosecutors a chance to lay out damaging evidence against Trump within the next few weeks — a timeline that would coincide with the ramp-up of early voting and the critical final weeks of the presidential campaign.”