M.L. Nestel joined Raw Story in 2023. An award-winning writer and editor, his work has been published in New York Magazine, Los Angeles Magazine and The Guardian, among other titles. He also produces and writes for true-crime genre TV shows. Prior to that, he served on the Newsweek masthead as a senior writer, wrote as a correspondent at ABC News and held the titles of West Coast bureau chief and senior writer at The Daily Beast. Priors also include working as senior national correspondent at The Daily Mail and investigative reporter at all three NYC tabloids: The New York Post,The New York Daily News and Newsday. He traveled around the country as a national correspondent at The Daily. M.L. published hundreds of stories about underground music and cinema — most notably as a critic for Box Office Magazine and the New York editor at Soma Magazine. He also headed development at Fountainhead Films. M.L. splits his time between Los Angeles and New York.
"I think it just adds to the vast number of irregularities and unconstitutional aspects of that trial that took place in New York," said Will Scharf, one of the former president's defense attorneys, appearing on CNN's "The Source" with Kaitlin Collins. "We're obviously looking forward to vigorously challenging that trial verdict on numerous grounds.
"This is just another ground that I think adds to the clamor in terms of overturning that verdict."
Collins wasn't convinced.
"I'm a little skeptical," she said. "But we'll see what the judge decides here."
The court ruled 6-3, putting to rest Trump's absolute immunity claim from all prosecution when it comes to core constitutional powers, but left open vulnerability when it comes to unofficial acts.
Scharf, a Republican candidate for Missouri attorney general, laid out some of the basis for not only getting the verdict appealed, but believes the high court's decision could help the 45th president secure a new trial.
He pointed to Trump's Twitter (now X) account and how previous tweets were raised as evidence thanks to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's prosecution team during the seven-week trial in Lower Manhattan's criminal court.
"President Trump's Twitter account has been held by numerous courts to be during his time as presidency, to be an official communications instrumentality of the White House — so those sorts of things would be official acts under the Supreme Court's ruling today. And therefore, they were not admissible as evidenced in that New York trial."
He also pointed to various responses and comments that were made or delivered out of the front door of the White House Communications "channels."
"Those would be things that we believe based on the Supreme Court's opinion today fall neatly within the outer perimeter of a president's official responsibilities and duties," he said.
Asked by Collins if the tweets and communications warrant a "new trial" in New York — Scharf told her, "it certainly should."
And as for the former president's federal election subversion case where he is charged along with others of scheming to overturn the 2020 election to clench onto the levers of presidential power Scharf hoped the ruling would also kick in.
"This case is going to be removed, handed back to the district court," he said. "The district court is going to have to determine which of the acts underlying the indictment are immune and which are not immune. And then we'll proceed from there."
