Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows on Friday appealed a federal judge’s denial of his attempt to remove his case to federal court, according to court documents obtained by MSBNC legal analyst Katie Phang.
Meadows is among 19 co-defendants along with Donald Trump who were indicted last month on allegations they tried to overturn the state’s 2020 election. They are being charged under the state’s racketeering law.
He had sought to remove his case to federal court, but U.S. District Judge Steve Jones earlier in the day shot down legal arguments his lawyers made on his behalf, noting that “has not met even the ‘quite low’ threshold” for such removal.
POLL: Should Trump be allowed to run for office?
“The evidence adduced at the hearing establishes that the actions at the heart of the State’s charges against Meadows were taken on behalf of the Trump campaign with an ultimate goal of affecting state election activities and procedures,” Jones wrote.
“Meadows himself testified that working for the Trump campaign would be outside the scope of a White House Chief of Staff.”
Meadows' appeal was widely expected.
"As predicted, Mark Meadows has appealed Judge Jones' denial of his attempt to remove to federal court," Phang wrote in a social media post.
A legal expert shot down Meadows’ motion.
“There is no basis for the appeal,” legal scholar Laurence Tribe said during an appearance on CNN.
