The Department of Justice concurred on Monday that a judge should take into account one of the candidates put out by former President Donald Trump to serve as a special master analyzing records seized during the FBI search on his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida.
Following the raid, Trump suggested that a special master be appointed to look through the confiscated papers and decide which ones should not be examined as part of any federal inquiry into claims that the former president removed secret documents when he departed the White House in January 2021.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon requested both Trump and the Department of Justice to submit nominees after expressing agreement with him.
Trump put out two candidates last week: Paul Huck Jr., a Florida lawyer, and Raymond Dearie, a retired top U.S. district judge in New York.
According to The Hill, former President Ronald Reagan recommended Dearie for the bench, whereas Huck has experience in both public and private service and once held the position of Florida’s deputy attorney general.
Thomas Griffith, a lawyer and former judge for the U.S., and Barbara Jones, a former U.S. district judge in New York, were both recommended by the Justice Department. District of Columbia Court of Appeals.
The DOJ said on Monday that it will endorse three of the four candidates for the position.
“[T]he government hereby advises the Court that, because previous federal judicial experience and engagement in relevant areas of law are important qualifications for this position, the government submits that the Court should select one of the following three proposed candidates as special master: The Honorable Barbara S. Jones (ret.), The Honorable Thomas B. Griffith (ret.), or The Honorable Raymond J. Dearie,” the federal filing stated.
“Judges Jones, Griffith and Dearie each have substantial judicial experience, during which they have presided over federal criminal and civil cases, including federal cases involving national security and privilege concerns. The government respectfully opposes the appointment of Paul Huck Jr., who does not appear to have similar experience,” according to the filing.
The statement read, “The government understands that each of the three candidates with prior judicial experience also currently employs staff who could assist in timely performing the duties assigned to the special master.”
Trump opposes the two nominations for the Justice Department in a filing on Monday.
“Plaintiff objects to the proposed nominees of the Department of Justice. Plaintiff believes there are specific reasons why those nominees are not preferred for service as Special Master in this case,” according to CNN, specific objections weren’t given in great depth.
The nominee will be chosen by Cannon.
Trump trashes both DOJ special master candidates, but DOJ says it's open to Judge Raymond Dearie, who is very widely respected from his days on the federal bench in Brooklyn (as well as the FISA court). So he's the odds-on favorite at this point.
— Harry Litman (@harrylitman) September 13, 2022
Dearie, 78, is still a judge in a federal court in Brooklyn, according to The Washington Post, but due to his senior status, he may hear fewer cases there.
According to The Post, Dearie previously served on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which hears issues involving national security, and was a U.S. attorney in Brooklyn in the 1980s.
Fascinating 2018 testament to one of Team Trump's Special Master candidates — Raymond Dearie — from someone decidedly non-Trumpy. https://t.co/rYe8QQsPDU
— Dan Lavoie (@djlavoie) September 10, 2022
More on this story via The Western Journal:
Before the review begins, its scope will need to be worked out, a point on which the two sides disagree. CONTINUE READING…