Judge Chutkan will set an early trial because Trump's lawyers aren't engaging 'legitimately': Ex-prosecutor

Judge Tanya Chutkan is likely to set an early trial date in the federal 2020 election coup case against former President Donald Trump, simply because the former president's lawyers are not engaging in the process in good faith or proposing a realistic alternative time frame to the prosecution, argued former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner on MSNBC Monday.

This comes after Trump's attorneys suggested a trial date in 2026, which was widely ridiculed as absurd by legal experts.

"Glenn, there has been a whole back and forth about the timeline here," said anchor Jen Psaki. "That's a very diplomatic way of saying it, given that Trump has asked for a trial in 2026. Jack Smith's team replied and said that is bogus. That date is going to be set, or we expect that day to be set coming up next Monday. What do you think is going to happen here? What is a viable timeline for a trial?"

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"Let's look at what Judge Chutkan said previously," said Kirschner. "She said, if the defendant continues to say things and post things that might interfere with our ability to pick a fair and impartial jury, might poison the jury pool, might intimidate witnesses, I will accelerate the trial date. He has done some of those things."

For that reason, Kirschner explained, "I have a feeling Judge Chutkan is going to set a trial date in early 2024."

"I also think when the defense team, Trump's defense team, throws out a date that is two and a half to three years down the road, April 2026, it shows that they are not really engaged in legitimate lawyering," added Kirschner. "It really feels like they are assistant campaign chairman at this point. That will help, I think, push Judge Chutkan to an earlier trial date if they are not trying to legitimately present a trial date that is an honest assessment of how much time they think they are going to need. I can't wait until next Monday. I want to see what Judge Chutkan does. I think she understands that everybody, including the American people, have a keen interest in getting this case resolved well in advance of the 2024 election."

Watch the video below or at the link here.

Glenn Kirschner says Judge Tanya Chutkan will set an early trial datewww.youtube.com