President Trump’s Former Chief of Staff Challenges Fani Willis in Court Today

The former chief of staff, Mark Meadows, takes to court today to ask a judge to remove the RICO case from Georgia courts to federal.

This is a risky move as it puts Meadows in a position to be cross-examined by the prosecution.

If the move pays off, a federal judge will see Meadows’s case.

The Washington Examiner has more on the case:

Mark Meadows, onetime chief of staff for former President Donald Trump, will be the first to make the case to a judge on Monday that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’s charges against him in Georgia should be removed from state to federal court.

Meadows, one of 19 co-defendants facing felony racketeering charges for allegedly illegally attempting to overturn the 2020 election, will appear for the hearing before U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones in Atlanta at 10 a.m. local time.

Ahead of the hearing, Meadows argued through his attorneys in a court filing that he had a right to federal removal because “the conduct giving rise to the charges in the indictment all occurred during his tenure and as part of his service as Chief of Staff.”

Meadows was chief of staff from March 2020 until the end of the Trump administration.

“In these circumstances, federal law provides for prompt removal of a ‘criminal prosecution … commenced in a State court … against or directed to’ a federal official,” Meadows’s attorney wrote.

Meadows is one of five co-defendants in the case to have filed a federal removal notice, and Trump is also expected to do the same. The reception Meadows receives on Monday could be an indicator for how others fare.

If Meadows were to secure federal removal, it would not erase the state charges against him but would allow jurors in a trial to be selected from a wider pool outside of the immediate area of Fulton County, which is deeply Democrat. The case would be heard before a federal judge, and the rules of federal court would apply, which would likely mean his trial would not be televised.

As said before, this is a risky move, but if all things go right, this will benefit President Trump and the others being tried.

Moving the trial away from the Democrat-dominated Fulton County would prove beneficial.

Getting further away from Fani Willis and her cronies would also prove incredibly beneficial.

Mark Meadows has the strongest arguments to have his case removed to federal court.

Best argument against: he was working as a political operative during the time

Best argument for Meadows: he was working in his "official capacity" to follow orders in his federal job

— Amee Vanderpool (@girlsreallyrule) August 28, 2023

Mark Meadows asking for removal to federal court could be a PR victory for Trump if the motion succeeds. pic.twitter.com/un44DQJIYw

— Carl Nyberg (@CarlNyberg312) August 28, 2023

Mark Meadows arrives at an Atlanta court this morning.

He's testifying about his duties as White House Chief of Staff, as part his request to move the GA election case from state to federal court. pic.twitter.com/45F2YJgtxn

— MSNBC (@MSNBC) August 28, 2023

Let’s turn it over to the Associated Press for more on the story:

Meadows is not entitled to immunity under the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which basically says that federal law takes precedence over state law, because his actions were “improper political activity” that weren’t part of his official duties and the evidence shows that he had “personal or criminal motivations for acting,” Willis’ team argued.

In response to Willis’ team’s filing, Meadows’ lawyers said all that is at issue at the moment is whether the case should be moved to federal court and that he has met that “very low threshold.”

Meadows was a federal official and his actions were part of that role, they wrote, noting that the chief of staff has “broad-ranging duties to advise and assist the President.” The merits of his arguments of immunity cannot be used to decide whether the case should be moved to federal court, they argued.

They added that the “Hatch Act is a red herring, particularly at this stage,” and shouldn’t even be discussed until after the case is moved to federal court. “Nonetheless, Mr. Meadows complied with federal law in connection with the charged conduct,” they wrote.

At least four others charged in the indictment are also seeking to move the case to federal court, including U.S. Department of Justice official Jeffrey Clark. The other three — former Georgia Republican Party chair David Shafer, Georgia state Sen. Shawn Still and Cathy Latham — are among the 16 Georgia Republicans who signed a certificate declaring falsely that Trump had won the 2020 presidential election and declaring themselves the state’s “duly elected and qualified” electors.

I’ll be on the edge of my seat today, anticipating the results.

Stick around, and I’ll inform you how this story develops.

This could be big, folks.