Judge Chutkan just applied 'extra pressure' that could speed Trump immunity ruling: expert
She's trying to break the legal gridlock.
With Trump's election subversion trial in D.C. federal court on ice — Judge Tanya Chutkan is turning the screws on the three appeals judges jostling over if the former president has absolute immunity or not.
In an interview on CNN's "Out Front" with Erin Burnett, former federal prosecutor and law professor Ryan Goodman discussed the impatient signaling coming from Chutkan to the D.C. Circuit court.
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"The court will set a new schedule if and when the mandate is returned," read her order.
She "could have put down another provisional date for start of trial but she didn't," said Goodman. "Which gives us a sense of just how suspended the action currently is as we await the D.C. Circuit [ruling]."
Chutkan's inclusion of the word "if" was actually very intentional, according to the expert.
"She's basically saying in a certain sense, 'This is very disruptive to the trial. Now I'm having to suspend everything!"
"So that's putting a little bit extra pressure on the D.C. Circuit to rule."
Goodman called the stagnant status of the case "a good day for President Trump but [he's] not necessarily out of the woods."