could special counsel jack smith be on his way to appealing for the ruble of judge aileen cannon. his team filed a sport motion that had something of a threat, and a lot about what they worry judge cannon might be trying to do. we'll explain the fears and the threat in a moment. first, on the filing itself, prosecutors called judge cannon's request for jury instructions based on the presidential records act quote, fundamentally flowed. the pra is not at issue, his office said, and shouldn't even be included in the trial, let alone in the guidance for what the jury should deliberate on. quote, it would be pure fiction to suggest that highly classified documents created by members of the intelligence and military presented to the president of the united states during his term in office were purely private. and that trump himself didn't even raise this defense until more than a year after he left the white house. decide now and give us enough time to appeal. smith's team is pleading. after all, the presidential records act isn't even what prosecutors have charged him with violating.

he of course, let's you clear appointed aileen cannon. meanwhile, he calls smith a lowlife who is nasty, rude, and condescending >> so >> this of course is pretty par for the course for trump. now we should note he is attacking jack smith, who there's no current gag order that would prevent anything along those lines what do you see here in this statement for trump? obviously politicizing the judge in each of these instances. >> yes. so the judge judge cannon is a judge that he appointed and so we saw him they're calling her highly respected. that's also in some ways putting pressure on her. we know that she's left open her her interpretation of the presidential records act. she's telling jack smith no, i don't have to tell you what i think about the presidential records act as it applies to this case, right now. and so we have trump really weighing in on both judges personally in a very political manner >> sophia, let's touch on president biden what we're learning this developing story. we have this morning about possibly learning more f

and special counsel jack smith, expressing frustration with judge aileen cannon new filing late tuesday, smith's team said cannon had ordered briefings based on a fundamentally flawed legal premise that had no basis in law or fact by sincere thanks to the president for his nomination. prosecutors harshly criticizing the trump appointed judges request for hypothetical the cold jury instructions. she asked both sides to take into account the former president's claim that he had broad authority to take classified documents under the presidential records act, >> whatever documents are president decides to take with him, he has the right to do so. it's an absolute right. >> prosecutors have repeatedly said that law is not relevant because trump is accused of obstruction and storing highly classified material in a bathroom and other unsecure locations at his florida estate. prosecutors also point out that telling a jury that trump had the authority to take records he wanted from the white house would make get nearly impossible to secure a conviction. prosecutors insist that legal premise is w

>> i think aileen cannon, to mark's point, is somewhat over her head. i am as baffled as many people are that we got to this point. aileen cannon came to this job with real credentials. >> are you really baffled? give me a break. >> i am, i'll tell you why. aileen cannon was a federal prosecutor before she took this job, she held the job for a number of years, she went to reputable law schools, worked at a reputable law firm, it's the when i came from before i came to msnbc. she's not a person who is a joke in terms of on paper. the fact that she is, to catherine's point, now drowning in paper, either it bespeaks incompetence and a level of anxiety and distrust in herself, or a thumb or an elbow on the scale, as you posited. what's difficult about this, though, when we talk about aileen cannon recusing herself, there is no basis for recusal that says delaying so much so that the government can't get a trial is a basis for recusal. there's all sorts of recusal standards about financial interest, but the only recusal standard that this fits into his being

okay, that's uncalled for. >> aileen cannon is wrong.k smith did not mince words when he filed the government's response to trump appointed judge aileen cannon's request for proposed jury instructions, including a jury instruction cannon said she was considering that would essentially leave a jury no choice but to acquit donald trump. in a strong rebuke, jack smith repeatedly called judge cannon's interpretation of the presidential records act wrong, and said it would distort the trial, asserting bluntly that the presidential records act has nothing to do with whether donald trump illegally retained classified documents in violation of the espionage act. it would be pure fiction to suggest that highly classified documents created by members of the intelligence community and military and presented to the president of the united states during his term in office were purely private. jack smith also points out that donald trump has never actually used that defense, that the documents were personal. trumps entire effort to rely on the preside

that smith should be sanctioned or censured for the way he is attacking a highly respected judge, aileen cannon, who is presiding over his fake documents hopes case in florida. he's a low light, is nasty, rude, and condescending and obviously trying to play

smith bluntly telling judge aileen cannon -- who was appointed by donald trump -- that her decision to even consider trump's claim that he could just declare classified documents to be his personal papers was "fundamentally flawed." smith's unusually critical language came in response to judge cannon's suggestion that she might instruct the jury to take into account trump's claims that the classified documents were his personal property. smith writing that such a "legal premise is wrong" and "would distort the trial." and he's urging judge cannon to explain her position as soon as possible, making it clear he is ready to appeal to a higher court. critics of the judge wonder if she's delaying on purpose to help donald trump. and example of just how long some of these decisions are taking -- there was a hearing 34 days ago to discuss when the trial should begin. david, judge cannon still has

now remember, we first met aileen cannon back in 2022 in the wake of the fbi's first search of trump's home in mar-a- lago and judge cannon ended up issuing a ruling that was wildly favorable to donald trump. she stopped the process of the government going through the search record and appointed a special master to review the documents which blocked the investigation. people were taken aback by this ruling. experts called it corrupt and lawless. then an appeals court quickly reversed it including trump appointed judges above her. as trump would have it, aileen cannon was randomly assigned to the actual criminal case once the charges were brought in june of last year and in every turn since then, she has appeared to be in over her head. today, we may finally reach the breaking point that could bring about the end of the aileen cannon experiment. it could all come tumbling down because of donald trump's ludicrous argument that the highly classified documents found in his personal possession are actually his to do with as he pleases. that is not what the law says. the thing you have to un

judge aileen cannon, who trump appointed to the bench, ruling that the case should go forward. but in her ruling, the judge also taking a swipe at special counsel jack smith, rejecting his call to explain her controversial suggestion that she might instruct the jury to consider trump's claims the classified documents were his personal property. smith called that notion "fundamentally flawed" and "wrong," insisting it "would distort the trial." he demanded that the judge clarify her intentions. tonight, judge cannon refusing to do so, writing, "the court declines that demand as unprecedented and unjust." judge cannon suggesting she's in no rush to resolve a potential clash over jury instructions, telling the special counsel he can try to force her hand if he

counsel jack smith and donald trump have until midnight tonight to respond to an order from judge aileen cannon with their proposed jury instructions in the criminal case against donald trump for his alleged illegal retention of classified documents and his obstruction of efforts by the government to get them back. judge cannon has already said she's considering giving an instruction to jurors that is essentially donald trump's defense in the case, a president has sole authority under the presidential records act to categorize records as personal or presidential during his or her presidency. judge cannon has yet to rule on new proposed dates for the trial to begin, fueling concerns that jack smith's proposed july start might not happen. in a paperless order today, judge cannon ordered donald trump and his co-defendants in the documents case to file a speedy trial report by friday, saying, the report shall include defendants positions on all excludable time from the speedy trial. and expressly indicate any defendants current assertion or waiver of speedy trial rights, with associated time frames

. >>> aileen cannon is wrong. jack smith did not mince words when he filed the response to the proposed for jury instructions. including this, cannon said she was considering this that would essentially leave the jury no choice but to acquit donald trump. repeatedly calling the interpretation of the presidential records act wrong, and said it would, quote, distort the trial,end quote. the records act had nothing to do whether donald trump illegally retained classified documents in violation of the espionage act. it would be pure fiction to suggest that holly classified documents created by members of the intelligence community and military, and presented to the president of the united states during his term in office were purely private,end quote. pointing out that donald trump has never actually used that defense that the documents were personal. , quote, his entire effort to rely on this was not based on any facts. it is a justification that was concocted more than a year after the white house. and in his evocati

you were talking about judge aileen cannon. you had said that, quote, evidence of her bias is pretty palpable. you said she was grossly incompetent. then today you got to read the ruling how do you feel after you saw it >> so i think she had an opportunity today to listen to review the criticism she received yesterday, and i just from me, but from many other commentators and i think it triggered a fight or flight moment for her. and instead of fighting are leave flying she failed. this. >> keep in >> mind that this ruling is on emotion that has probably a cumulative total of 50 plus pages of legal briefs, detailed citations to the case law jack smith, making it plain that the presidential records act has nothing to do with the case. and that not only should trump lose the motion to dismiss the presidential records act considerations, should be completely withdrawn from the case instead, she issues instead of citing a single one of those cases, where the authority is very compelling, she she issues a two-and-a-half page ruling t

not aileen cannon. aileen cannon, again, highly respected. >> what do you >> make of his defense of cannon, alyssa? >> well, there's >> two things. he's trying to do here. he's trying to sway the court of public opinion. he wants to prejudice the public or his supporters against judges. he doesn't like, and he wants to make them favorable to the ones that he does. but he also it's a nod to the judge. i mean, it's very similar to one of his attorneys referred to break a kavanaugh when who's going to be ruling on immunity saying, you know trump appointed him. so we think he'll be with us this is something that they do and kinda put out there publicly in hopes of swaying the judges in their favor. now of course, judges should be unbiased. that shouldn't affect them, but that's what he's thinking and saying this will there be repercussions for it >> well, not really. i mean, he can get away >> with them and it's very funny because you always accuses others, often accuses others and what he's doing, he's pla

i want to start with aileen cannon.ck smith do about it and what we will soon learn -- >> what jack smith can do is to mandamus the judge. mandamus is different from an appeal. appeal is this is a complicated legal issue and the judge may be misinterpreted the law. the mandamus is an order from an appeals court to the judge, you need to follow the law right now. mandamus is saying to the judge, you basically don't know how to do your job. maybe you should consider -- reconsider this judging thing. so it's a last resort. it's jack smith signaling he's had it with this judge. he's going to do everything he can to either get her kicked off the case or to make her follow the law. >> yeah. i wonder if a writ of mandamus would help or hurt her supreme court audition this clearly seems to be. donald trump is trying to claim the insurrection -- i mean that the presidential records act gives him the power to take these documents. but he's not being charged under that. he's been charged with a different -- under a different law,

aileen cannon a ruling now giving trump until may 9th to disclose the specific classified documents heied documents trial. it does just feel like she's just induling whatever small, minor thing he brings up in order to give him more time. it's just so clear now. >> i will push back a little bit on that. yesterday we saw a ruling from aileen cannon that went the way that the special counsel's office wanted. they had asked her to reconsider a prior order in her case that would have resulted in the revelation of nearly two dozen witness names. and they pushed back hard and said will you reconsider this? and while she did so bebrujingly and sharp language, ultimately she agreed with the special counsel's office, it's too risky, ginn this political atmosphere, the necessity of witness safety and needing to protect them against witness interference and tampering to let people see their names. >> maybe i'm just cynical. don't you think maybe she did that because she was afraid if she said no they would go to the 11th circuit. she didn't want to give this case up. my horrible theory about her,

special counsel jack smith's team will be face to face with judge aileen cannon today for the first timece smith signaled that he might use what has been euphemistically known as the nuclear button to try to get her thrown off the case. well, today his prosecutors will fight attempts by two of trump's co-defendants to get the charges against them thrown out, but big picture, it's clear from scathing court filings that smith is increasingly frustrated with judge cannon over her handling of the trial. from trump, meanwhile, the opposite. he's been praising the judge on social media as respected, fair, and impartial. nbc's ken dilanian is outside the courthouse in fort pierce, florida, renato marriotti with "politico." ken, what can you tell us about this? explain what the hearing is all about, and could there be some fireworks considering what we've seen in filings? >> chris, first, i think you're right to say that the sub text here is the frosty relationship, increasingly frosty between jack smith's office and judge aileen cannon, but today's hearing is not about the main character, donal

going on a little bit, but there has been this simmering frustration on jack smith's side with aileen cannon for several months now, i think we're seeing some of that come to the surface in this filing and look at issue here is sort of an unusual order from cannon that she issued last month and she wanted prosecutors and defense attorneys to respond to these two scenarios for jury instructions. the first one deals with having the jury assess if records fell into the category of personal or presidential as are laid out in the president records act. this is an issue that trump's attorneys have argued as one of their defenses, and that prosecutors have argued have no basis in the wall or fact as they say here. but aileen cannon wants again, the jury instructions is hypothetical to be dressed by both sides. so that's a point of frustration from jack smith. and the second category is assuming trump had complete authority to take these documents from the white house. again, that's something jack smith's team has argued repeatedly that is has no basis in law. in fact, in aileen cannon still seems t

i mean, aileen cannon still has over a dozen very significant motions and issues hanging out there basedn what i've seen in the courtroom, based on what we've seen in the filings, it appeared here's it in some ways she's maybe just almost too afraid to make some of these decisions, understanding how much scrutiny she is. >> is it a friend >> or is it deliberate that is really one of the questions and elliana, bring you back in here just to remind people, it has been 34 days, 34 days since cannon held a hearing on scheduling the mar-a-lago documents, trial. we thought maybe we would here very shortly after that announcement, 34 days ago. and when the trial would be and here we are. >> yeah. i think the chances of this case being tried before the election are now approaching zero. even jack smith is acknowledging there's no way this case will be tried in may as it was originally scheduled. i agree with paul. i think the issue here is the judge's inexperience. i actually disagree with a narrative that's out there. the judge cannon is somehow in the bag or pulling for trump because she could

this simmering frustration that we've been sensing from jack smith towards aileen cannon, the judge in this case seemed to come to a head last night in this filing from the special counsel's office, they are taking issue with this odd order from aileen cannon that came in about last month, and it asks both sides to submit briefs for these jury instructions outlining two different scenarios. one, outlining is a jury instructions that assumes that the president has the authority under the presidential records act to take these classified records home. and the second one is a scenario where it assumed that donald trump had broad authority as president to declassify different different documents both of which jack smith argues could quote distort the trial. if the jury is sort of read in on these on these two scenarios as if they are fact, as you read in the interests, do i mean, he takes serious issue with aileen cannon sort of assumption that both of these scenarios should be in the jury's minds as they hear testimony. once an or if and when this case goes to trial >> zach, thank you so

and again, just one of many decisions outstanding from judge aileen cannon. but here, special counsel did signal that if she were to give any of these instructions to the jury, that they would likely appeal, which of course would have the effect, but further delaying this case. >> yeah. talk about this. what would this mean for an appeal >> so >> if they're saying, look, if you're really going to try to inject the presidential records act into this case. we will likely move to appeal this. take it to an appellate court for review because they don't believe that this has any place in this case. it was interesting, they actually reveal two additional evidence that they've gathered in the course of this investigation. and they said, we have evidence of trump's record practices in the white house, and there's no indication that he believed that any of this was personal. so the thing is if they were to appeal and if her decisions here right, that would likely take months and that would delay this case. but look better as of right now, we're still waiting for her t

fortunately, we have former us attorney harry litman with harry, your reaction to judge aileen cannons ruling in the classified documents case >> so my best guess, boris, is this as jack smith is saying, to cheers forward, judge cannon, today on the one hand, she rules, and that's what she wasn't doing. and obviously, she took to heart or was was chastened by his very strong filing monday night that said get off the diamond rule will already please on the other what she said was very sort of basic. she just said, look, the indictment itself charges the espionage act, doesn't mention the presidential records act. the indictment is sufficient to give information. so i'm denying trump's motion to dismiss based on the presidential records act. but she then drops a paragraph that will give a little heartburn that says, of course, i could still at trial change my mind are basically give the jury instructions based on the bogus presidential records act. and so that risk that real the prompted smith to act and do a forceful filing is not completely eliminated, but she replied, she issued an or

she sees this as suggesting jack smith has setting up to ask that aileen cannon be cuz i'm not sure if he would go that far, but he's certainly setting her up to take it to the 11th circuit when he gets the 11th circuit true are one option >> is to say that this judges inexperienced doesn't know what she's doing. this is the second time we've had to take her up to the 11th circuit on what is really basic elements of law for that reason, she should be recused sometimes appeals courts will do that. >> this is not a filing from a happy special counsel. >> that's clear, by no means. >> all right. what have you met? a happy especially that's a good. >> i'm >> only grumpy >> nick. thank you very much. >> this >> morning of federal appeals court will hear arguments over the controversial texas immigration law. this is the one that would allow texas law enforcement to arrest people suspected of crossing into the state of legally and allows state judges to deport them. the legal issue is, is this are they usurping the role of the federal government? cnn? it's rosa flores following this case thi

judge aileen cannon, frustrations with the judge in the mar-a-lago documents case boiling over in a filinge last night regarding instructions to the potential jury in the trial. smith asked the judge to hurry up and rule on what is team trump's most brazen claims that the documents trump horded in mar-a-lago in a bathroom, a bedroom and a basement, documents containing some of this nation's most secret and protected national security secrets actually belonged rightfully to trump because the presidential records act, or the pra. special counsel writing this, the court should be wlaer at the outset that trump's entire effort to rely on the pra is not based on any facts, it is a post hock justification that was concocted more than a year after he left the white house, importantly, trump has never, never represented to this court that he, in fact, designated the classified documents as personal. he made no such claim in this motion to dismiss in his reply, or at the hearing on march 14th, 2024. despite every opportunity, and every incentive to do so. and the reason is simple. he never did so.

transport but aileen cannon says it does not provide a pretrial basis to dismiss any of the charges. ke cannon is ruling in favor of jack smith who has argued repeatedly it has nothing to do with the prosecution here, judge cannon left the door open for him to use the presidential records act as part of his defense during the trial. that means jurors or the judge herself could acquit trump based on his interpretation of that law. andrew, how are you interpreting aileen cannon's move? >> it is what jack smith wanted. he wanted a decision. we say it doesn't apply at all. we want a pretrial ruling. in fact the rules say they are entitled to that. just decide one way or the other. for good. not halfway. undecideing pretrial. that it doesn't apply. but trial. who cares about that? i care about what you are going to say at trial. why? the big thing people need to understand, once the jury is sworn, double jeopardy attaches. meaning if the jury acquits or if the judge acquits, it is over. so the judge has the power once the jury is sworn to say, and it can be on an idea like the presidential

andrew, how are you interpreting aileen cannon's move here?the presidential records act is a legitimate one of defense? >> which is exactly what jack smith wanted. he said just make a decision. we say it doesn't apply at had, we want a pretrial ruling. in fact, the rules say they're entitled to a pretrial ruling. just decide one way or the other for good. >> not halfway. >> not halfway, which is deciding pretrial does it apply. jack smith is saying who cares about that, i care about what you're going to say at trial. why? the big sort of thing people need to understand to be in the weeds for a moment, once the jury is sworn, double jeopardy attaches, meaning if the jury acquits or if the judge acquits, it's over. >> it's finito. >> especially if the judge has the power once the jury is sworn to say, you know what, i'm entering a judgment of acquittal. and it can be on a cockamamie idea like the presidential records act. so jack smith is saying that i need a decision that it doesn't apply not just pretrial, because guess what, nobody is decidin

maia and glenn, the one judge that has been criticized by donald trump is judge aileen cannon. maia cannon, thank you for getting us started today. we appreciate you, as always. >>> coming up, biden's job boom, the latest numbers showing just how well the economy is really doing, and what the biden administration must do to convince voters the grass is not going to be greener under a second trump term. >>> plus, fundraising face-off, trump's high-stakes fundraiser tonight as the biden team reports yet another blockbusterc fundraising record. you are watching "the katie yo phang show" only on msnbc. ms a perfect day for a family outing! shingles doesn't care. but shingrix protects. only shingrix is proven over 90% effective. shingrix is a vaccine used to prevent shingles in adults 50 years and older. shingrix does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients or to a previous dose. an increased risk of guillain-barré syndrome was observed after getting shingrix. fainting can also happen. the most common side effects are pain, redness

black and white issue, what did judge aileen cannon do? get this, because it is weird. her decision was to tell both sides, from's lawyers and smith, to write instructions to the jury, each based on their interpretation of the law. the idea is that jack smith's team would drop jury instructions with the correct interpretation a lot and donald trump's team would draft them with the completely wrong, opposite interpretational law, and judge cannon would decide which one to use. maybe a jury instruction being like, just so you know, before we do this, presidential records act means the opposite of what it clearly says, got that? for this reason, cannon's order me that they both go and draft their own jury instructions, was met with mere universal condemnation, not the first time this has happened. from judges, lawyers, and the prosecutors in jack smith's office. now, smith is taking a clear's van, telling judge cannon, if she indulges in this argument that donald trump to take whatever he wants because the presidential records act says so, an argument that is literally the

what is his argument >> oh, look, let's talk about judge aileen cannon first, right? she isn't the trump appointed federal judge here. she's only been on the bench for a couple of years. never handled a case like this wolf and even given the fact that this is the in precedence it prosecution of a former president related to classified documents. her approach has come under considerable scrutiny. now this is certainly the strongest reviewed from the special counsel, but of course, they still might need to try a case in front of us. they can only go so far, but she gave them an assignment a few weeks ago. she said, i want you to submit instructions for jury and an eventual trial about the presidential records act. now, this is a law that was passed after nixon resigned, that covers how government records are handled at the end of an administration, trump has tried to suggest that he was allowed to have this classified documents under the presidential records act. was special counsel rejects this on its face saying, look, he's not charged under this, he's charged with ha

look, he's very frustrated with judge aileen cannon. she is a trump appointee. she's only been on the bench for a few years. certainly never handled et case like this, but her approach has come under a lot of scrutiny not only for decisions that she has actually made, but also for this backlog of things she hasn't yet decided this over a dozen motions still pending that she has not weighed in on. here. she asked both sides to submit jury instructions related to the presidential records act when that's a law, it's post-watergate law that governs which documents after an administration leaves belong to the government she said, i'd like one version that lays out all these documents that trump brought to mar-a-lago so which ones are personal? which ones are presidential records? >> and >> then there's another version where you have to assume that he had the right to take all of this down to mar-a-lago. the special counsel was not having it for us. they wrote both scenarios rest on an unstated and fundamentally flawed legal premise. namely that the presidential recor

elie, this has to do judge aileen cannon asked both the prosecution and the defense and to write hypothetical jury instructions on the issue of whether the mar-a-lago documents were in fact personal property. donald trump's property in the filing judge, the special counsel, jack smith wrote, quote, the court should be aware at the outset that the trump's entire effort to rely on the pra, the presidential records act is not based on any facts. it is a post-talk justification that was concocted more than a year after he left the white house the special counsel also writes there is no basis in law or fact for that legal presumption in the court should reject trump's effort to invent one as a vehicle to inject the presidential records act into this case. what do you see their ally? >> well, john jack smith's frustration really just jumps off the page in this brave that by the way, classifies as a prosecutorial temper tantrum. i mean, usually prosecutors are very just the facts very deferential to a judge. and here we see jack smith really expressing his frustration at the judge the source of his

jack smith filed a scathing review of judge aileen cannon who is overseeing the criminal prosecution rump's classified documents. he excoriated cannon that could lead to a dismissal of the case or acquittal of trump. his frustration was so palpable, it suggested he might appeal to a higher court on the matter when ever she makes an actual decision. which could take a while. since judge cannon joined this case, she has amassed a pile of motions. all of which she has yet to rule on. it is a sort of treasure-trove of potentially controversial calls. more than two months ago on january 16th, trump's lawyers asked cannon to force prosecutors to hand over additional materials they believe would demonstrate the prosecution's ties to the intelligence community. judge cannon has yet to rule on that. on february 8th, that was two months ago, jack smith's team begged her to reconsider her decision to release unredacted filings to the public. ones that could reveal the name of prosecution witnesses. judge cannon has yet to rule on that. six weeks ago on february 22nd, trump's lawyers filed for se

coventrydirect.com. >>> very, very late last night special counsel jack smith filed a scathing reluke of judge aileen cannon, the trump appointed federal judge in florida overseeing the former president's criminal prosecution over classified documents. in a filing smith excoriated cannon for entertaining a totallyimatorless claim, one that could lead to either directly a dismissal of the case or acquittal for trump. smith's frustration so palpable he suggested he'll appeal to a higher court on the matter whenever judge cannon actually makes a higher decision, which could take a while. since judge cannon has filed this case she's amassed a pile of motions all of which he's yet to rule on. more than two months ago on january 16th trump's lawyers asked cannon to hand over additional materials they believe would demonstrate the prosecution's ties to the intelligence community. judge cannon has yet to rule on that. on february 8th, that's also nearly two months ago, jack smith's team begged judge cannon to reconsider her decision to release un-redacted filings to the public, ones that could reveal the names of p

council jack smith and donald trump have until midnight tonight to respond to an order from judge aileen cannontrump. for his alleged illegal retention of classified documents and his obstruction to get them back. she is considering. judge cannon has yet to rule on new proposed dates. fueling concerns that jack smith's proposed july start might not happen. at a paperless order, june cannon ordered them to file a speedy trial the report shall include defendants positions and expressly indicate any defendant's current assertion or waiver of speedy trial rights with associated time frames end quote. judge cannon makes even clearer in her paperless order, the classified documents was never going to trial. before the election end quote. joining us now, andrew weissman, former chief of the criminal division. of the criminal division. york and the co-author of the best-selling book the trump indictments. the historic charging documents with commentary. he represents people that work in the intelligence community. i want to start with bradley, you deal specifically in matters of documents and classifie

what are jack smits options, given the order and also the tone of aileen cannon today? >> that's the $65,000 question. this has been so unique to judge cannon all along. she issues rulings that are really complete or definitive rulings or what we call final orders that are appealable, and that's what she's done here. she said right now, at this point, based on the indictment, the pra does not provide a reason to dismiss, leaving open what we've been talking about. right now, there's not a final order for a traditional appeal. there is the prospect of seeking a writ of mandamus, and to do that, what you're doing is you're going to the court of appeals like you would on appeal, but you don't have a final order to appeal and you're saying that the judge made it clear and indisputable error, here it would be not addressing the legal question that jack smith asked her to address, that there is no other alternative to obtain appeal, and that this order would be appropriate. i think there's another option before going for a writ of mandamus. if i were jack smith, i would be thi

while judge aileen cannon didn't throw out the charges this week, smith says she is giving trump an unfairn a fiery filing, he accused her. smith warned that cannon is operating on a quote fundamentally flawed legal premise and threatened to appeal to a higher court to have her removed from the case. it would appear the special council is making we say don't make me put my baby down. joining us now, barbara mcquaid. cohost of the hash tag sisters in law podcast and author of the book attack from win. thank you for being here. how would the special council actually get cannon removed from trump's case? >> i think we are a few phases away from that actually happening but they are in this little showdown about whether donald trump could raise this defense of the presidential records act which is absolute legal nonsense. it is not a defense here whatsoever and i think what jack smith wants the judge to do is make a decision on this issue so that if he wants to appeal he could do that. the government cannot appeal. so the judge did deny donald trump's motion to dismiss the case on that basis, b

could special counsel jack smith be on his way to appealing for the ruble of judge aileen cannon. on that had something of a threat, and a lot about what they worry judge cannon might be trying to do. we'll explain the fears and the threat in a moment. first, on the filing itself, prosecutors called judge cannon's request for jury instructions based on the presidential records act quote, fundamentally flowed. the pra is not at issue, his office said, and shouldn't even be included in the trial, let alone in the guidance for what the jury should deliberate on. quote, it would be pure fiction to suggest that h

>> chris, the decision that judge aileen cannon rendered a request that would have revealed the names of close to two dozen witnesses that may testify for the prosecution if and when this case goes to trial. the government pushed back and asked her to reconsider because they said revealing their names would compromise not only their safety but the very integrity of their investigation in the case because it could expose them to efforts to interfere with their testimony. judge aileen cannon last night begrudgingly agreeing with them, they made several arguments, the end result is witness names will not become public, and in ordering that their substantiative statements be revealed in interviews with the fbi, for example, in the past, she has also said that think details in those statements that could be used to identify them, those two must be redacted. >> lisa rubin, thank you for that. >>> and the markets meantime, are tumbling after a hotter than expected inflation report. cnbc senior markets correspondent bob, break this down for us. whether or not the interest rates would be broug

. ♪ >>> very, very late last night special counsel jack smith filed a scathing rebuke of judge aileen cannon florida overseeing the president's criminal prosecution over classified documents. in the filing, smith -- cannon for a meritless claim, one that could lead directly to either a dismissal of the case or an acquittal for trump. smith's frustration here was so palpable that it suggested he may ultimately appeal to a higher court on the matter whenever judge cannon makes an actual decision. which could take a while. since judge cannon joined this case, she has amassed a pile of motions, all of which she has yet eto rule on. it's a sort of treasure-trove of potentially controversial calls. more than two months ago on january 16th, trump's lawyers asked cannon to force prosecutors to hand over additional materials they believe would demonstrate the prosecution's ties to the intelligence community. judge cannon has yet to rule on that. on february 8th, that's also nearly two months ago, jack smith's team begged judge cannon to reconsider her decision to release unredacted filings to the pub

. >>> coming up, the story of judge aileen cannon and jack smith just took another turn in florida, now she is facing new scrutiny. >>> plus, a blast from the past in another case. we are back in 60 seconds. seco. bother the bugs. not your family. ahh! zevo is made with essential oils which attack bugs' biological systems. it wipes cleanly, plus is safe for use around people and pets. gotcha! zevo. people-friendly. bug-deadly. choose advil liqui-gels for faster, stronger and longer-lasting relief than tylenol rapid release gels because advil targets pain at the source of inflammation. so for faster pain relief, advil the pain away. >>> we have more now on decision 2024 and a renewed sense of fundraising urgency. donald trump will spend tonight gladhanding with some of his party's biggest spenders as he plays catch up with the biden- harris campaign. let's go to trump's big dollar donut gala tonight. take us behind the scenes on this trump fundraising crunch. i'm looking for a few certain things i think the thing we are looking at the most is, are people aware that the legal has to facto

we finally got a ruling from judge aileen cannon on the presidential records act. donald trump was trying to get it thrown out based on that. what happened? >> she basic said, and this is something she could have written as soon as the motion papers came in. it's what any judge would have done in this situation. on the motion to dismiss, the obligation is to take the indictment as true. there was nothing that mentioned the presidential records act. there's nothing in the case law federally or even in the legislative history that would suggest the espionage act is somehow mooted or displaced by the rights of a president to designate documents as personal under the presidential records act. she's saying for right now i'm going to accept the allegations as true. the it does not provide me with a basis to dismiss 32 counts of national defense information. >> she's saying that you're raising the presidential records act. you're not charged with violating the presidential records act, you're charged with violating the espionage act and obstruction among other things. the

mar-a-lago en florida, el fiscal especial jack smith le habia solicitado a la jueza federal a cargo, aileen cannonciara el juicio en julio, pero la magistrada no solo no ha contestado sobre el cronograma, sino tambien estaria ponderando la afirmacion de que trump tendria propiedad personal c cuando decidio mantener en su poder esos documentos. >> esto es una piedra angular en este caso. >> y a proposito de las elecciones en este pais, segun la encuesta del wall street journal, con un margen becerror del 4%, donald trump llevaria la delantera sobre biden en seis estados clave. >> sabe, trump mantendria una ventaja de entre tres y seis puntos. >> la mayor diferencia esta en arizona, carolina del norte y nueva tambien. >> y ahora hablemos de i inmigracion. >> el procurador de texas reconocio hoy que su estado fue demasiado lejos con la ley sb4 que permite a autoridades locales detener y deportar a indocumentados. >> lo hizo la audiencia en una corte de apelaciones que esta escuchando argumentos para analizar la legalidad de esta norma. >> alicia barcena, la canciller de mexico por su parte celebro qu

it's one of the big mysteries in this case, when will it go to . >> judge aileen cannon did grant, hows this protection impact the case moving forward? >> so the defendant's team already knows who the witnesses are, but they wanted to make them public, and it's really unclear why. having the witnesses names all over the media would not advance their defense, but it certainly could expose these people to threats and intimidation. so legally speaking this was an easy case but it took judge cannon a long time to come to the right decision. but ana, this is a win for jack smith. >> ken dilanian, thank you. paul butler, please stay with us. we are just three days away now from donald trump's first criminal trial. jury selection begins monday in the new york hush money case, and we just got a look at the prosecution's potential witness list. it includes more than a dozen people who could take the stand from stormy daniels and michael cohen to former trump white house aides and trump organization employees. msnbc's yasmin vossoughian has more on the key players. >> reporter: the trump hush mo

and so in this one, judge, aileen cannon says that the presidential records act, which has to former president has been claiming gave him the authority to possess these documents, to take these documents when he left the white house? that that is not relevant, at least at this stage. she is, however, allowing him to continue to continue to present this perhaps even at and so that is something that is a bit of a conflict with what the special counsel counsel jack smith is pushing her to do. i'll read you just a part of her ruling which was a very short just over two pages, in which she said, to the extent that the special counsel demands an anticipatory final, families is finalization of jury instructions prior to trial, prior to a charged conference and prior to the presentation of trial hello. defenses and evidence, the court declines that demand as unprecedented and unjust. you see her there pushing back on jack smith, who was really trying to force the judge to make a decision on whether trump will be able to use the presidential records act as part of his defense wall evan. perez

but judge aileen cannon ruled that particular law does not provide a basis to dismiss the case before trial. her ruling leaves open the possibility that trump's defense could be used later in the trial, which is set to start on may 20th. >>> it's official. no labels has no candidate. the bipartisan group that was working on a third-party presidential ticket announced it is ending its effort. no labels said it could not find anyone with a credible path to winning. nbc news has reported at least a dozen candidates including chris christie and joe manchin turned them down. >>> in taiwan, a desperate search for survivors continues after that magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck on wednesday. with 18 missing and 17 trapped, the death toll is likely to rise. >> reporter: the urgent rescue effort to get to survivors on taiwan. and an all-out search is under way in the mountains for people trapped. cut off by massive landslides, triggered when the earthquake hit. with major roads and tunnels blocked. there's no way out. rescue crews were able to reach some people, leading them to safety onfoo

special counsel smith is telling judge aileen cannon that she has no idea what she is talking about. so what's this all about? well, judge cannon requested jury instructions from both sides to no, you didn't miss anything the trial has not started and no, they haven't even pick the jury in the trial date itself is written in pencil, not inke for jack smith wants the judge to reject trump's claim that he cannot be prosecuted because he transformed somehow classified documents into private propertynder what's called the presidential records act that last month, the judge seemed to signal that she thought that defense was absurd but then here's the confusing part for jack smith's team she asked for jury instructions that would say the opposite. now the big question is, where do we go from here? well, nationally security attorney brad moss is here with me at the magic wall. and as i understand it, brad we have got three options here and three doors. so what is behind door number one? what happens if judge cannon does not agree with special counsel smith? so >> this is sort of the nightmar

>> in that case, we are starting to see judge aileen cannon take steps forward to make rulings. there are so many things that had been before her that she just hadn't broken the logjam on and now one of those things she decided finally, after a lot of consideration, arguments multiple rounds of briefings in court, she decided that witness names will be redacted in some of the court filings where donald trump's team is arguing for things before the trial, expanding prosecution team, some other motions that they've filed. so there is gonna be a little bit more transparency in this case because those filings because we weren't seeing in a lot of contacts, there will be redactions so that witness names will be protected obviously, john in this mar-a-lago documents case, several witnesses are people. we've never really heard of in the public domain before. their low-level workers at mar-a-lago. so their names are going to be anonymized in court papers. they're going to be referred to by pseudonyms going forward. but finally, at least in the big picture of this case, we're getting at

in this case, aileen cannon.ing that the special counsel, jack smith was very frustrated with the pace of this decision. sure around masking these witness names did she do the right thing here? and what is the overall big picture on how she's handling this? >> well, i see certainly did the right thing here. i think under the circumstances, and all that, the former president says, and the rhetoric and what i call dog-whistles. i mean, clearly you see it time and time again at court after court. judges, everybody attack. there threats. so i think the decision today was certainly the right decision. i can certainly understand also, jack smith's frustration. this case appears to be on a slow walk to make sure it does not get to trial before the election in november. and moreover, some of the things that she's i think the way she's handled some of this and some of the order her she's issued is giving a lot of people some concern that all she is doing is waiting until she sees the evidence. let a jury sit in the box, c

but tonight, a judge trump judge aileen cannon, of course, is presiding over trump's classified documents case, and she is being accused of upping the ante on stalling the case to avoid trial and a special counsel, jack smith's frustration is now clearly evident, was escaping filing that he put forth smith in it, accusing the judge of putting the entire case in jeopardy before it even begins, specifically because of her unusual request the jury instructions in the case the based on trump's claim that he had the authority to take classified documents tomorrow. lago >> this is a >> judge who has repeatedly ruled for trump again and again on important claims in the case. >> she has >> slow rolled what is long been considered an open and shut case. very black and white with 40 counts against trump >> she's deleted so much. it's essentially at a standstill. she'd originally scheduled to trial for may 20 recently those she said prosecutors proposed date of july 8th was too soon. and as of tonight, she has no date on the calendar for the trial to start among our biggest moos to solve the case, s