U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who is overseeing former President Donald Trump's classified documents case in Florida, is "overwhelmed with anxiety," according to MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin.
Cannon, who was appointed to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida by Trump, postponed the former president's classified documents trial indefinitely on Tuesday. The district court judge has faced some criticism for being too Trump-friendly in pre-trial proceedings.
In an order filed on Tuesday, Cannon wrote that the trial start date originally scheduled for May 20 is delayed in order to address issues concerning classified evidence that need to be resolved before the case can be presented before a jury. She did not set a new date.
Morning Joe co-host Willie Geist asked Rubin on Wednesday if Cannon was "slow walking" the case.
"I think she is, but I also think based on some reporting from David Lat that this is a judge who is overwhelmed and is second-guessing herself at every corner," Rubin replied. "She seems to be overwhelmed with anxiety about the import of the case."
Rubin continued: "A combination of insecurity in your own decisions, the gravity of the case before you and maybe also some inclination to slow walk where you don't have trust in yourself—that's a toxic brew and we're all drinking it right now."
Newsweek reached out to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida via email for comment, however, they said Cannon does not comment on pending cases.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 40 federal charges concerning allegations he illegally retained classified materials after he left the White House in January 2021 and then obstructed the federal attempt to retrieve them.
Cannon Afflicted with 'Anxiety' and 'Insecurity'
Lat, who Rubin mentioned on Morning Joe, is a lawyer and legal commentator. In a blog post titled Clerking For Judge Cannon: A Behind-The-Scenes Look on Substack from March, he quoted some of Cannon's early law clerks, who spoke anonymously, and he wrote that they had "positive experiences" working under her.
However, he said this changed when she was assigned Trump's classified documents case.
"As the months passed, the stress and workload increased in chambers. Judge Cannon became afflicted with an unfortunate combination of anxiety, from handling a matter of national importance, and insecurity, from never having run a case of this complexity. Understandably affected by all the pressure, the judge—whom her early clerks described as a wonderful mentor—started to change. And not for the better," wrote Lat, who also spoke to unnamed law clerks who worked under Cannon post-Trump case.
While Trump's classified documents trial is on hold, he is currently on trial in Manhattan for allegedly falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment made during his 2016 presidential campaign to adult film actress Stormy Daniels over a rumored affair in the early 2000s. Trump has denied the affair and pleaded not guilty to all charges.
He also faces two other criminal indictments relating to election interference (one on the state level and one on the federal level). In both of those cases he has pleaded not guilty. Trump continues to say that all of the civil and criminal court actions he faces are politically motivated.
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Rachel Dobkin is a Newsweek reporter based in New York. Her focus is reporting on politics. Rachel joined Newsweek in ... Read more
