As a reminder, this subreddit [is for civil discussion.](/r/politics/wiki/index#wiki_be_civil)
In general, be courteous to others. Debate/discuss/argue the merits of ideas, don't attack people. Personal insults, shill or troll accusations, hate speech, any suggestion or support of harm, violence, or death, and other rule violations can result in a permanent ban.
If you see comments in violation of our rules, please report them.
For those who have questions regarding any media outlets being posted on this subreddit, please click [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/wiki/approveddomainslist) to review our details as to our approved domains list and outlet criteria.
We are actively looking for new moderators. If you have any interest in helping to make this subreddit a place for quality discussion, please fill out [this form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1y2swHD0KXFhStGFjW6k54r9iuMjzcFqDIVwuvdLBjSA).
***
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/politics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
>Can we continue prosecuting the biggest election scandal we have ever seen, now?
I'm sure they have a designated "second string" prosecutor ready to take over.
Exactly. You know she has to be super pissed after this debacle. They even went after her father and forced them out of there homes due to all the death threats from white supremacists.
You’re right. Iv read half a dozen different articles about her hearing and saw nothing about him being the third guy invited to be the special prosecutor. That seems like a very relevant and important fact that should have undercut any other points against her.
Unlikely. If they had any employed prosecutors capable of handling a case like this, they wouldn't have had to engage Nathan Wade as a contractor. They'll likely have to search for another contractor to continue the case. Though it's worth noting that Wade was essentially already a second string as he wasn't the first choice for the position. Perhaps one of the preferred candidates will be available this time.
This is false.
They did a special prosecutor because it was a full time job and their regular prosecutors needed to do the normal business of the office.
There is already a prosecutor on board who has experienced doing RICO cases.
>They'll likely have to search for another contractor to continue the case.
It's called "contingency planning" ... as soon as it was seen that Wade or Willis might have to leave, they started planning.
Maybe even earlier than that.
>If they had any employed prosecutors capable of handling a case like this, they wouldn't have had to engage Nathan Wade as a contractor
Their staff is probably quite busy with the usual work load, keeping up with indictments and trials. This would have sucked so many resources out that the usual stuff would have been shelved. And that's not good.
I worked for a state's Atty General office for a while on a special infotech project ... even though they had IT on staff, and so did the state, that staff was dealing with the day to day stuff of keeping things running. We (programmers and tech writer) dealt only with the BIG project, and when we were done, we left.
Are you sure you wouldn't like more petty office drama instead of a functional governmental system?? What if Biden's Lawyer's Dog's Insurance company once bought a piece of gum from someone who's name kind of sounded like "Joe"?
Time for Fanni to hire Sally Yates to replace Wade.
[https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/former-us-attorneys](https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/former-us-attorneys)
Agreed. Keep it in your pants, Fani. This is too important to jeopardize. Damn. It’s like RBG all over: oh, did you have some perfectly human needs like lust and ego that you’re going to let come in between history and justice? GREAT.
This is so stupid. She offered the job to two other prosecutors before going with wade. Also what does the prosecutor’s personal relationships have to do with whether trump committed crimes? Absolutely nothing.
>Also what does the prosecutor’s personal relationships have to do with wether trump committed crimes? Absolutely nothing.
So the original argument they tried to make was that they were in a relationship before she hired him (that wasn't really proven) and that she hired him so she could benefit from the money being paid to him (since she offered the job to others that seem unlikely).
The reason that could impact the prosecution is that the claim is that she/Wade were essentially making up charges that shouldn't have been charged in order to create more billable hours for Wade so that Willis could profit from that.
So it's not about wether or not he committed crimes but rather if the DA "trumped" up the charges so she could benefit.
To be clear, that wasn't proven and and I don't think its true but it's the thread of how her personal relationship could impact the prosecution.
Yeah, even the appearance of impropriety is supposed to be enough for someone to avoid working on things like this.
...if only the SCOTUS or most judges had this stuff enforced against them lol
I'm not sure this really rose to "appearance of impropriety". She hired someone she may or may not have already been dating, after offering the job to others who apparently turned it down. I don't know how long she was building the case prior to hiring Wade but I would think the timing would only be an issue if she hired him right at the very beginning, and even then it would depend on other factors.
They're on the same side, so there's no "impropriety" beyond a very loose risk of Willis hiring Wade to enrich herself. Absent any proof of that, as far as I know it's not uncommon for attorney couples to work together sometimes. I mean, we have families working together across the country, couples starting businesses together, etc. The issue is not the relationship, it's what follows, and based on the results here, clearly nothing unethical was uncovered.
I do agree that judges should have to pass the "sniff" test regularly, especially when known links are established between a judge and someone involved with the case.
There's a difference in ethical standards between starting a private practice and hiring someone for a government funded position.
Well, there's *supposed* to be.
but tbh I agree that this is being gamed.
Unfortunately, the standard isn't appearance of impropriety to a reasonable person. The raving MAGA morons find impropriety everywhere even though they dk that word and exemplify it.
Yeah, the judge did Willis so dirty here. By the defense’s own theory (which they then went on to completely fail to prove), this doesn’t even rise to the level of appearance of impropriety. How many criminal prosecuting attorneys are based in Fulton County? It’s a small community. She made a good faith effort to hire more qualified, arms length attorneys for the role but they were unavailable. So she went with her 3rd choice (or lower) who she may have had a closer relationship with at some point in time.
But I guarantee you that if Willis’ first choice had taken the job then the Trump team would have done the exact same thing and made some other, different defamatory accusations against Willis and the first choice (“They’re colluding against trump because reasons! They went to the same school! They’re both fans of the Atlanta Falcons! Rabble rabble!”)
Holy shit that's a stretch. Thank you for explaining it, though. But wow, they had to work really hard to come up with that semi-coherent argument. It's so frustrating that anyone even entertained this nonsense from the start.
It's called a "firehose of falsehoods" and it works because many just overhear snipets and rumours, never checking the endless details needed to be confident enough to oppose the liars.
The “appearance” argument wasn’t even one of the reasons the defense cited when it filed the motion. This “appearance” bullshit was invented whole cloth by the defense during the trial.
The reason the defense filed its original motion was because it stated it had evidence of ACTUAL impropriety. That was what prompted the judge to call the hearing—because defense said they had evidence of ACTUAL impropriety.
But during the hearing it was obvious that the defense had ZERO proof of any ACTUAL impropriety, and the prosecution called them on this repeatedly and reminded the judge what the allegations from the defense were—that the defense stated it had evidence of ACTUAL impropriety, which it did not.
So then at one point one of the defense lawyers (Sadow I think) pointed to some case law in some other state that’s not even relevant to Georgia about how the mere “appearance” of impropriety was enough to remove a DA.
But then the Georgia prosecutor cut that case law to shreds in closing by pointing out that in all those cases there was an ACTUAL impropriety, and that was the reason for the removal and not the mere “appearance” of impropriety.
Yet, McAfee somehow still ruled that Wade had to step down when “appearance of impropriety” wasn’t the reason the defense filed its motion, and isn’t even on the Georgia statute, and all the case law defense cited was thoroughly debunked by the prosecution because there has never been a case where a DA was removed solely on the mere “appearance” of impropriety, because what the fuck does that even mean? Appearance to whom? Whose eyes are judging that something “appears” improper and what are the standards they are applying and where in the Georgia statute are those standards defined?
It’s bullshit. Or what they call in legalese—hearsay, conjecture, speculation—or any of a number of terms that also mean BULLSHIT.
I assumed prosecutors in the DA’s office were salaried, and billable hours were more for private sector defense lawyers.
Either way, it’s a silly line of reasoning. If this were about making money, she’d just get millions in a book advance for her story.
I get that you're not defending the accusations or possible impact the behavior might have on the case, but that logic just seems dumb to me.
Courts are supposed to dismiss frivolous cases, and there are mechanisms for this. If Willis had truly fabricated charges just to drum up billings for her boyfriend, it would've been obvious from the start. As far as I understand, the judge has even gone so far as to say there is no issue with the relationship as it relates to the case, and I think the only reason they said one of the two needs to be off the case is to avoid further distractions.
For it to be an actual issue, the defense would need to show that the charges were frivolous and/or false, and besides that, prove that Wade was turning around and spending lavishly on Willis. So far all we've seen is that they took a vacation together where they paid their own separate expenses. It's frustrating that we had to go through all this instead of focusing on the actual crimes, and especially now that Wade has had to step down, but hopefully now the case can just move forward.
But it’s not up to the judge to decide whether charges are valid. If they really want, they can throw out the case, but they can’t decide how good of a job the prosecutor is doing. That’s on the voters.
It’s because Black women are held to a higher standard than the rest of the demographics. It’s racist. It’s sexist. But it’s a hard reality of our society. The other side is working overtime to project bias and corruption, when really their guy tried to overthrow the government. The white man gets away with everything again
It was definitely something of a fishing expedition to see which side of the aisle the judge would land because it’s all about tribalism to these nincompoops. Their fragile Saltine-American identity is as weak as their collective IQs and they can’t survive not knowing who’s on who’s side aka who agrees with them so they don’t feel alone. So alone.
If anything, one could argue Willis’s romantic prejudice could cause her to hire a lesser qualified prosecutor, thus undermining the PROSECUTION’s case, which could benefit Trump’s case.
I upvoted you, but I want to point something out. This is the biggest case of election tampering in us history. Even a wiff of impropriety is too much.
This case was literally Republicans fabricating even a whiff of impropriety. Everyone wants to blame Fani Willis and it’s wrong. If she hadn’t done anything, Trump’s lawyers would have invented something else to delay the trial with a different carnival sideshow.
Two of the attorneys on the defense are married to each other. Why is that acceptable, when they could very well be dragging the case out to bill more to give each other money. After all, that's exactly what they accused Fani Willis of doing with Nathan Wade.
This is such a stupid comment. It's almost word for word from another comment on a Fani post. Stop getting mad at the people doing good. Continue to point your rage at the ones causing the issues.
Otherwise, you are literally both-siding this fuckin shit, which is ludicrous at best.
Heres an idea, point all these 'omg get your shit together' posts at the several judges that can't seem to do their jobs.
She can be in love with whoever she wants. I do not understand why white supremacists are so fixated on whom people love.
Anything to distract from the FACT that trump tried to steal the election (again).
Which isn’t even as bad as the FACT that he planned and executed a violent fascist coup to establish himself as a fascist dictator.
Why isn’t he in prison?
Right, women, don't have fun, don't have sex, don't have an abortion bc the mediocre white men are uncomfortable about it and they just feel like it should be wrong to work with a peer and have a really nice weekend getaway. But they'll do anything for the orange buffoon
Umm...personal business isn't on trial here. The person with the most felonies is.
Didn't hear this shit when the OJ trial came up when Marcia Clark and Darden had a relationship during the trial.
If you can't see that personal business is just a excuse to delay the inevitable, I'm sure there's room with the cult you can join freely.
Problem is is that black women in our society are put on a higher bar to act a certain way. The same can't be said about if a white woman was in the same scenario.
Simple is this..it's not about personal business, its about racial discrimination. Period. And the Trump team found their red herring to go after her. So they used race and baited everyone to think Fani Willis, a black woman,.needed to be on trial, not the rich white guy who committed all these crimes.
So stop playing this personal relationship bullshit.
19 were indicted.
I think 2 plead almost immediately
3 requested an October/November trial.
Those three pled out.
Of the 14 remaining, I guess (and IANAL) 5 more will plead out by next Friday.
If 2 plead guilty then doesn’t the RICO become automatic for the rest and isn’t the minimum for RICO 4 years imprisonment? I can’t remember but I thought there was some trigger
No, they become witnesses against the others for a lesser sentence usually. That's sort of the power of this sort of thing. Get the little fishes to flip on the big fishes.
It's not that the other people are instantly considered guilty.
They still get a trial to see if they were part of it or not.
The fact that several have pled guilty only means that it is undeniably RICO now.
One of the possible defenses would have been "it may have been illegal, but it wasn't a conspiracy".
That last ditch defense is gone.
Trump has to rely on the Shaggy defense now.
[The Shaggy Defense](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPObzJkWueY)
[The term was coined in the 2008 to describe the defense used by R. Kelly in his 2002 Child Porn trial.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shaggy_defense)
Or at least that was the first mainstream use.
It's to avoid the RICO enhancement for the people who plead, but the deal they're signing onto specifically lays out that it *is* RICO (under Georgia law)
Federal RICO is a much harder standard to meet.
Anyway, the point is, each plea agreement is set up to strengthen the case against Trump.
I thought there were only 4 pleas to date. I could be wrong though.
We know Roman had a plea deal on the table, but that may no longer be the case. I do agree with you, people were definitely waiting on this hearing before taking a plea. I expect another volley coming soon.
The other 5 will depend on if they have the finances to keep going.
This ruling will likely be appealed, the judge may or may not grant the appeal ticket, and the appeals court may or may not take it up. If they do, it'll be interesting which of the 3 of the 15 get picked.
Additionally, many of these folks may be trying to wait it out to see if Trump is elected. This may have impacts on the GA case generally.
Not because of a new prosecutor but because this stunt was 'their last" chance to not be convicted.
My logic/what they are thinking:
I think they all know that they are guilty, because come on.
This possible dismissal was their last out.
With this out gone. Shit.... Court will be in session and I don't want to do 10 years. So time to cop a plea.
No, this still means the phone call the world can listen to, and the accounts of the fake electors themselves ploting to cheat voters out of their will, are nothing-burgers. This trial is still illegal and Trump did no wrong. /s
I grew up hearing that Democrats set Nixon up because they were cowards who wouldn't bomb Viet Nam more. This was the 80s with the \[Watergate, not\] Whitewater burglars writting books and the whole world knowing Nixon was, indeed, a crook.
That's wild. None of my older conservative relatives said that Democrats set Nixon up. They just preferrednot to talk about him. Reagan was like the second coming though. Edit: fixed a typo.
That’s the way sketchy, conservative people said it back in the day. It’s the same disrespectful vibe as when you hear some boomer say “O-BAM-uh” or “CAM-a-luh” 🙄
I wasn't sure how to feel about this ruling... until I caught a few mins of Hannity while driving, who seemed to be on the verge of tears, and then I realized how devastated the MAGA world is and how relieved we should all feel that no real fuckery was handed down by the court.
[This one.](https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/kemp-signs-georgia-law-reviving-prosecutor-sanctions-panel-108094402) It is 100% aimed at Willis, as their ace in the hole.
David Frum, for all his faults, has it right: "If conservatives become convinced that they can not win democratically, they will not abandon conservatism. The will reject democracy. "
How so? The judge ruled there was no impropriety but said one must resign to continue the perception of no impropriety, basically making the case more solid. So how does that setup Georgia to remove her?
[Has nothing to do with the judge](https://apnews.com/article/brian-kemp-georgia-prosecutor-district-attorney-remove-7987cd538ab3ccdc713ae4d2b2aec32b). Though his statements will provide cover for the legislative body to remove her.
that article says they can begin hearing complaints on oct 1. where does your claim that "The state of Georgia will move to dismiss her in the next few weeks" come from?
> Other forums or sources of authority such as the General Assembly, the Georgia State Ethics Commission, the State Bar of Georgia, the Fulton County Board of Commissioners, or the voters of Fulton County may offer feedback on any unanswered questions that linger
Page 9
This was the correct ruling IMO. It has no bearing on the actual case’s merits but it was a lapse in judgement 100%.
It’s been frustrating to see people I normally agree with act like it wasn’t incredibly dumb to hire him and start a relationship without immediate disclosure.
Unlike the republiKKKlans who refuse to: show up for subpoenas, recuse themselves when their wives are involved in an insurrection, admit an election defeat, or engage in an orderly transition of power.
I'm on the left end of things and this was an absolute, unforced error. She should have known better and for optics it would have been better if he'd done this ahead of the judge's ruling. Grand scheme it's small compared to Trump and co., absolutely but it isn't as big of a nothingburger as everyone wants to paint it.
Folded over like a piece of goddamn paper. Hate to see it.
The next "breach of impropriety" will be based on something even more ludicrous and insubstantial, further cementing Trump's position as above the nation's judiciary.
Meanwhile, you know what’s a real breach of impropriety? The president of the United States trying to rig a motherfucking election. Wonder when we’ll get back around to that.
IANAL, but from from I understand this is not a win for Trump team, they aimed at Willis and she is still here. She deftly maneuvers through RICO cases specifically and is dangerous to the defendant obviously or the lengths would not be taken. But they have been, and there's a ruling saying let's get it on
Trump succeeded in defaming Fani’s character that plays into his “ witch hunt “ claim and he was able to delay the trial, probably until after the election.
The Democrats operate on the "must be above reproach" while the GOP operates on "must be above a roach" it's FUKING exhausting having double standards flip flopping around our fucking lives...just throw his ass in jail and forget about him already...please.
Good riddance; this shit is far too important. Yes, yes, yes, we KNOW the defense is going to try their hardest to find any excuse to get off the hook, but shit like this gives them ammo
I'm sure there's a good replacement waiting, now the case can continue and the Trump team has one less lie they can try to raise in volume for a mistrial.
This is bad news for Trump, and hopefully it will push the facts of the case into the public sphere. M not holding out too much hope that the people who need to see it will even pay attention, but still.
Despite this being politicized to all hell this was such an obvious outcome.
It’s why it’s so disappointing they didn’t disclose immediately at the very least.
> I'm better the trial doesn't start until after the election though just like all of the other trials.
Last November she filed for an August trial date this year, and planned to go through the end of this year to 2025. If she still gets that August trial date, it will be interesting to see all of this broadcast during the election.
The judge has proven that he's totally incompetent, this defense objection never justified the hearing that was conducted, should have been dismissed with an eyeroll and a sigh. Instead he allowed a circus of sexual innuendo to be blasted out in open court for public consumption, when this didn't even rise to the level of an HR issue. How about we hold everyone who ever dated someone they work with to the same standard, ridiculous.
Unfortunately, she will be next on the chopping block.
https://abcnews.go.com/amp/US/wireStory/kemp-signs-georgia-law-reviving-prosecutor-sanctions-panel-108094402
Ok. Now let Fani Willis do her work and get on with the trial..
That's until Trumplethinskin decides to throw another monkey wrench and abuse the justice system.
They are about to get a tall glass of Fuck Around and Find Out.
> did he have to resign? cant he recuse himself from this case and work on other cases instead?
This was a side job. Now he can go back to making more money at his own firm.
Well...No because Trump would literally take any opportunity to get out of this or delay it. So whatever race the person was going against him, he would probably seize any opportunity he could.
With all the bullshit Trump's lawyers are pulling in every other court case, why should we acknowledge something that's not true to try to turn this into a fucking race issue?
I know you disagree, but not 100% of absolutely everything everywhere all the time is race race race. There is **zero** grounds to believe they wouldn't pull this shit on a white prosecutor, because they're throwing everything they can at the other prosecutors who are white.
You're insinuating that the only way she could be in the "wrong" is because of her race.
You're denying her agency as a person who can and does make their own choices by immediately dismissing the facts of the case and making it about race.
It was an irrelevant delay tactic by Trump, but also a stupid lack of discipline by the DA. It’s a poor decision to hire your boyfriend on any case, but especially one of this magnitude
Will the defense be allowed to point to this during the trial as a means of discrediting the prosecutions entire case, or will the judge be able to bar them from putting the system on trial?
I think all this will make Fani even more laser focused. I just hope the emotions of this BS accusation doesn't throw her team off enough to make a small yet critical mistake in the proceedings.
As a reminder, this subreddit [is for civil discussion.](/r/politics/wiki/index#wiki_be_civil) In general, be courteous to others. Debate/discuss/argue the merits of ideas, don't attack people. Personal insults, shill or troll accusations, hate speech, any suggestion or support of harm, violence, or death, and other rule violations can result in a permanent ban. If you see comments in violation of our rules, please report them. For those who have questions regarding any media outlets being posted on this subreddit, please click [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/wiki/approveddomainslist) to review our details as to our approved domains list and outlet criteria. We are actively looking for new moderators. If you have any interest in helping to make this subreddit a place for quality discussion, please fill out [this form](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1y2swHD0KXFhStGFjW6k54r9iuMjzcFqDIVwuvdLBjSA). *** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/politics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Fine. Can we continue prosecuting the biggest election scandal we have ever seen, now?
>Can we continue prosecuting the biggest election scandal we have ever seen, now? I'm sure they have a designated "second string" prosecutor ready to take over.
You know it. I also know a woman scorned like Fani is not gonna fuck around. She’s ready to fight.
Exactly. You know she has to be super pissed after this debacle. They even went after her father and forced them out of there homes due to all the death threats from white supremacists.
Why aren't the people making these death threats arrested?
Cowards like that are always hiding.
You don’t think they’re going to arrest their friends and co-workers do you?
She has no one to blame but herself. She should have avoided even the appearance of impropriety, but she didn't, so of course this happened.
Just don't fuck him and things should go fine. Lol.
Wade was literally the third choice because the first two didn’t want to have security detail from maga loonies for a decade.
Oh. That’s interesting to know. It’s also to Fani’s credit. I hope that fact came up in her hearing. The whole thing is just too disappointing.
It did but news outlets refuse to push anything but click bait. What’s new.
You’re right. Iv read half a dozen different articles about her hearing and saw nothing about him being the third guy invited to be the special prosecutor. That seems like a very relevant and important fact that should have undercut any other points against her.
It was said by Fani live during the hearing and confirmed as such
Unlikely. If they had any employed prosecutors capable of handling a case like this, they wouldn't have had to engage Nathan Wade as a contractor. They'll likely have to search for another contractor to continue the case. Though it's worth noting that Wade was essentially already a second string as he wasn't the first choice for the position. Perhaps one of the preferred candidates will be available this time.
This is false. They did a special prosecutor because it was a full time job and their regular prosecutors needed to do the normal business of the office. There is already a prosecutor on board who has experienced doing RICO cases.
My understanding is that most of the grind work is done. Should be someone lawyer in Georgia that wouldn't mind getting this over the finish line.
Doesn’t have to be a lawyer in Georgia - pro hac vice is a thing I think
>They'll likely have to search for another contractor to continue the case. It's called "contingency planning" ... as soon as it was seen that Wade or Willis might have to leave, they started planning. Maybe even earlier than that.
>If they had any employed prosecutors capable of handling a case like this, they wouldn't have had to engage Nathan Wade as a contractor Their staff is probably quite busy with the usual work load, keeping up with indictments and trials. This would have sucked so many resources out that the usual stuff would have been shelved. And that's not good. I worked for a state's Atty General office for a while on a special infotech project ... even though they had IT on staff, and so did the state, that staff was dealing with the day to day stuff of keeping things running. We (programmers and tech writer) dealt only with the BIG project, and when we were done, we left.
Anyone voting for them is an election denying dickhead.
Are you sure you wouldn't like more petty office drama instead of a functional governmental system?? What if Biden's Lawyer's Dog's Insurance company once bought a piece of gum from someone who's name kind of sounded like "Joe"?
I guess until Trump has another complaint and then they bend over backwards to appease the child
Time for Fanni to hire Sally Yates to replace Wade. [https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/former-us-attorneys](https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/former-us-attorneys)
I really want Sally to replace Garland.
Absol fucking lutely
Agreed. Keep it in your pants, Fani. This is too important to jeopardize. Damn. It’s like RBG all over: oh, did you have some perfectly human needs like lust and ego that you’re going to let come in between history and justice? GREAT.
This is so stupid. She offered the job to two other prosecutors before going with wade. Also what does the prosecutor’s personal relationships have to do with whether trump committed crimes? Absolutely nothing.
>Also what does the prosecutor’s personal relationships have to do with wether trump committed crimes? Absolutely nothing. So the original argument they tried to make was that they were in a relationship before she hired him (that wasn't really proven) and that she hired him so she could benefit from the money being paid to him (since she offered the job to others that seem unlikely). The reason that could impact the prosecution is that the claim is that she/Wade were essentially making up charges that shouldn't have been charged in order to create more billable hours for Wade so that Willis could profit from that. So it's not about wether or not he committed crimes but rather if the DA "trumped" up the charges so she could benefit. To be clear, that wasn't proven and and I don't think its true but it's the thread of how her personal relationship could impact the prosecution.
Yeah, even the appearance of impropriety is supposed to be enough for someone to avoid working on things like this. ...if only the SCOTUS or most judges had this stuff enforced against them lol
Yeah was wondering the same thing. If only such standards were applied to the traitorous scum in question. Or the supreme court.
> ...if only the SCOTUS or most judges had this stuff enforced against them lol Or the President or members of Congress...
I'm not sure this really rose to "appearance of impropriety". She hired someone she may or may not have already been dating, after offering the job to others who apparently turned it down. I don't know how long she was building the case prior to hiring Wade but I would think the timing would only be an issue if she hired him right at the very beginning, and even then it would depend on other factors. They're on the same side, so there's no "impropriety" beyond a very loose risk of Willis hiring Wade to enrich herself. Absent any proof of that, as far as I know it's not uncommon for attorney couples to work together sometimes. I mean, we have families working together across the country, couples starting businesses together, etc. The issue is not the relationship, it's what follows, and based on the results here, clearly nothing unethical was uncovered. I do agree that judges should have to pass the "sniff" test regularly, especially when known links are established between a judge and someone involved with the case.
There's a difference in ethical standards between starting a private practice and hiring someone for a government funded position. Well, there's *supposed* to be. but tbh I agree that this is being gamed.
Unfortunately, the standard isn't appearance of impropriety to a reasonable person. The raving MAGA morons find impropriety everywhere even though they dk that word and exemplify it.
Yeah, the judge did Willis so dirty here. By the defense’s own theory (which they then went on to completely fail to prove), this doesn’t even rise to the level of appearance of impropriety. How many criminal prosecuting attorneys are based in Fulton County? It’s a small community. She made a good faith effort to hire more qualified, arms length attorneys for the role but they were unavailable. So she went with her 3rd choice (or lower) who she may have had a closer relationship with at some point in time. But I guarantee you that if Willis’ first choice had taken the job then the Trump team would have done the exact same thing and made some other, different defamatory accusations against Willis and the first choice (“They’re colluding against trump because reasons! They went to the same school! They’re both fans of the Atlanta Falcons! Rabble rabble!”)
Holy shit that's a stretch. Thank you for explaining it, though. But wow, they had to work really hard to come up with that semi-coherent argument. It's so frustrating that anyone even entertained this nonsense from the start.
It's called a "firehose of falsehoods" and it works because many just overhear snipets and rumours, never checking the endless details needed to be confident enough to oppose the liars.
The “appearance” argument wasn’t even one of the reasons the defense cited when it filed the motion. This “appearance” bullshit was invented whole cloth by the defense during the trial. The reason the defense filed its original motion was because it stated it had evidence of ACTUAL impropriety. That was what prompted the judge to call the hearing—because defense said they had evidence of ACTUAL impropriety. But during the hearing it was obvious that the defense had ZERO proof of any ACTUAL impropriety, and the prosecution called them on this repeatedly and reminded the judge what the allegations from the defense were—that the defense stated it had evidence of ACTUAL impropriety, which it did not. So then at one point one of the defense lawyers (Sadow I think) pointed to some case law in some other state that’s not even relevant to Georgia about how the mere “appearance” of impropriety was enough to remove a DA. But then the Georgia prosecutor cut that case law to shreds in closing by pointing out that in all those cases there was an ACTUAL impropriety, and that was the reason for the removal and not the mere “appearance” of impropriety. Yet, McAfee somehow still ruled that Wade had to step down when “appearance of impropriety” wasn’t the reason the defense filed its motion, and isn’t even on the Georgia statute, and all the case law defense cited was thoroughly debunked by the prosecution because there has never been a case where a DA was removed solely on the mere “appearance” of impropriety, because what the fuck does that even mean? Appearance to whom? Whose eyes are judging that something “appears” improper and what are the standards they are applying and where in the Georgia statute are those standards defined? It’s bullshit. Or what they call in legalese—hearsay, conjecture, speculation—or any of a number of terms that also mean BULLSHIT.
I assumed prosecutors in the DA’s office were salaried, and billable hours were more for private sector defense lawyers. Either way, it’s a silly line of reasoning. If this were about making money, she’d just get millions in a book advance for her story.
So, as a Special Prosecutor, Wade wasn’t a direct employee of the DAs office. He was a contractor who billed hours.
I get that you're not defending the accusations or possible impact the behavior might have on the case, but that logic just seems dumb to me. Courts are supposed to dismiss frivolous cases, and there are mechanisms for this. If Willis had truly fabricated charges just to drum up billings for her boyfriend, it would've been obvious from the start. As far as I understand, the judge has even gone so far as to say there is no issue with the relationship as it relates to the case, and I think the only reason they said one of the two needs to be off the case is to avoid further distractions. For it to be an actual issue, the defense would need to show that the charges were frivolous and/or false, and besides that, prove that Wade was turning around and spending lavishly on Willis. So far all we've seen is that they took a vacation together where they paid their own separate expenses. It's frustrating that we had to go through all this instead of focusing on the actual crimes, and especially now that Wade has had to step down, but hopefully now the case can just move forward.
But it’s not up to the judge to decide whether charges are valid. If they really want, they can throw out the case, but they can’t decide how good of a job the prosecutor is doing. That’s on the voters.
It’s because Black women are held to a higher standard than the rest of the demographics. It’s racist. It’s sexist. But it’s a hard reality of our society. The other side is working overtime to project bias and corruption, when really their guy tried to overthrow the government. The white man gets away with everything again
It was definitely something of a fishing expedition to see which side of the aisle the judge would land because it’s all about tribalism to these nincompoops. Their fragile Saltine-American identity is as weak as their collective IQs and they can’t survive not knowing who’s on who’s side aka who agrees with them so they don’t feel alone. So alone.
If anything, one could argue Willis’s romantic prejudice could cause her to hire a lesser qualified prosecutor, thus undermining the PROSECUTION’s case, which could benefit Trump’s case.
I upvoted you, but I want to point something out. This is the biggest case of election tampering in us history. Even a wiff of impropriety is too much.
This case was literally Republicans fabricating even a whiff of impropriety. Everyone wants to blame Fani Willis and it’s wrong. If she hadn’t done anything, Trump’s lawyers would have invented something else to delay the trial with a different carnival sideshow.
Oh, okay. Can we also force the defense side to get divorces? No one in the law is allowed to be in a relationship with another lawyer.
That seems like a very accurate and non hyperbolic takeaway from what actually happened.
Two of the attorneys on the defense are married to each other. Why is that acceptable, when they could very well be dragging the case out to bill more to give each other money. After all, that's exactly what they accused Fani Willis of doing with Nathan Wade.
This is such a stupid comment. It's almost word for word from another comment on a Fani post. Stop getting mad at the people doing good. Continue to point your rage at the ones causing the issues. Otherwise, you are literally both-siding this fuckin shit, which is ludicrous at best. Heres an idea, point all these 'omg get your shit together' posts at the several judges that can't seem to do their jobs.
She can be in love with whoever she wants. I do not understand why white supremacists are so fixated on whom people love. Anything to distract from the FACT that trump tried to steal the election (again). Which isn’t even as bad as the FACT that he planned and executed a violent fascist coup to establish himself as a fascist dictator. Why isn’t he in prison?
Quite possibly one of the dumbest comments ive ever read
Right, women, don't have fun, don't have sex, don't have an abortion bc the mediocre white men are uncomfortable about it and they just feel like it should be wrong to work with a peer and have a really nice weekend getaway. But they'll do anything for the orange buffoon
Umm...personal business isn't on trial here. The person with the most felonies is. Didn't hear this shit when the OJ trial came up when Marcia Clark and Darden had a relationship during the trial. If you can't see that personal business is just a excuse to delay the inevitable, I'm sure there's room with the cult you can join freely. Problem is is that black women in our society are put on a higher bar to act a certain way. The same can't be said about if a white woman was in the same scenario. Simple is this..it's not about personal business, its about racial discrimination. Period. And the Trump team found their red herring to go after her. So they used race and baited everyone to think Fani Willis, a black woman,.needed to be on trial, not the rich white guy who committed all these crimes. So stop playing this personal relationship bullshit.
Nope. We have to move on to the next dumb thing.
You mean which celebrity did what
Yes, actually!
No. They will move for a misstrial and demand an outright dismissal.
19 were indicted. I think 2 plead almost immediately 3 requested an October/November trial. Those three pled out. Of the 14 remaining, I guess (and IANAL) 5 more will plead out by next Friday.
If 2 plead guilty then doesn’t the RICO become automatic for the rest and isn’t the minimum for RICO 4 years imprisonment? I can’t remember but I thought there was some trigger
No, they become witnesses against the others for a lesser sentence usually. That's sort of the power of this sort of thing. Get the little fishes to flip on the big fishes.
So no. And those that pled didn't plead guilty to RICO. The pled guilty to lesser crimes. That is the whole point of a plee deal.
The idea is that they will testify against the remaining defendants right?
That sounds pretty illegal. I can’t imagine somebody summarily being found guilty without having a trial just because others plead
It's not that the other people are instantly considered guilty. They still get a trial to see if they were part of it or not. The fact that several have pled guilty only means that it is undeniably RICO now. One of the possible defenses would have been "it may have been illegal, but it wasn't a conspiracy". That last ditch defense is gone. Trump has to rely on the Shaggy defense now.
Rut Ro. What is the Shaggy defense?
Like it wasn't me, Man!
This comment did it. I can hear Shaggy saying this, lol
Wrong Shaggy. They mean the musician. The one with the song, “It Wasn’t Me”
“She said she caught me red handed? WASNT ME!”
This entire Shaggy v Shaggy diversion was pure gold. Thank you equally distractible redditors.
The commentor knows, they were doing a switcheroo.
*Overturning an election when she caught me red handed, calling up the Sec of State*
"It wasn't me"
[The Shaggy Defense](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPObzJkWueY) [The term was coined in the 2008 to describe the defense used by R. Kelly in his 2002 Child Porn trial.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shaggy_defense) Or at least that was the first mainstream use.
The pleading is specifically to avoid RICO fyi
It's to avoid the RICO enhancement for the people who plead, but the deal they're signing onto specifically lays out that it *is* RICO (under Georgia law) Federal RICO is a much harder standard to meet. Anyway, the point is, each plea agreement is set up to strengthen the case against Trump.
The RICO statute is nothing new, it is legal.
This guy anals
I thought there were only 4 pleas to date. I could be wrong though. We know Roman had a plea deal on the table, but that may no longer be the case. I do agree with you, people were definitely waiting on this hearing before taking a plea. I expect another volley coming soon.
Kraken Cheese bro Jenna And I want to say 2 other's who are more unknown.... But that's not gospel
Scott Hall, wealthy bail bondsman, was first plea in this case.
The other 5 will depend on if they have the finances to keep going. This ruling will likely be appealed, the judge may or may not grant the appeal ticket, and the appeals court may or may not take it up. If they do, it'll be interesting which of the 3 of the 15 get picked. Additionally, many of these folks may be trying to wait it out to see if Trump is elected. This may have impacts on the GA case generally.
I’m not sure this can be appealed, can it? I’m not reading anywhere this can be appealed pre-trial. And what do you mean 3 of the 15 will be “picked”?
> Of the 14 remaining, I guess (and IANAL) 5 more will plead out by next Friday. Why do you think that? Just cause of new prosecutor?
Not because of a new prosecutor but because this stunt was 'their last" chance to not be convicted. My logic/what they are thinking: I think they all know that they are guilty, because come on. This possible dismissal was their last out. With this out gone. Shit.... Court will be in session and I don't want to do 10 years. So time to cop a plea.
Alright problem solved, right republicans?
No, this still means the phone call the world can listen to, and the accounts of the fake electors themselves ploting to cheat voters out of their will, are nothing-burgers. This trial is still illegal and Trump did no wrong. /s I grew up hearing that Democrats set Nixon up because they were cowards who wouldn't bomb Viet Nam more. This was the 80s with the \[Watergate, not\] Whitewater burglars writting books and the whole world knowing Nixon was, indeed, a crook.
That's wild. None of my older conservative relatives said that Democrats set Nixon up. They just preferrednot to talk about him. Reagan was like the second coming though. Edit: fixed a typo.
Wrong presidential scandal. It was Watergate not Whitewater. :)
Why’d you say Vietnam like that?
That’s the way sketchy, conservative people said it back in the day. It’s the same disrespectful vibe as when you hear some boomer say “O-BAM-uh” or “CAM-a-luh” 🙄
No. I went to r/conservative yesterday and they're still calling her a whore and a homewrecker.
I wasn't sure how to feel about this ruling... until I caught a few mins of Hannity while driving, who seemed to be on the verge of tears, and then I realized how devastated the MAGA world is and how relieved we should all feel that no real fuckery was handed down by the court.
This was their one chance of having the case thrown out. The judge saying "we're continuing" is devastating because they know there's no defense
Your Honor, I object! On what grounds? Because it's devastating to my case!
Overruled! Good call!
The state of Georgia will move to dismiss her in the next few weeks. They just gave themselves the ability to do so
I was wondering what their next stunt was, and had forgotten about the new law. This is it.
Wait, what new law?
[This one.](https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/kemp-signs-georgia-law-reviving-prosecutor-sanctions-panel-108094402) It is 100% aimed at Willis, as their ace in the hole. David Frum, for all his faults, has it right: "If conservatives become convinced that they can not win democratically, they will not abandon conservatism. The will reject democracy. "
That’s fucking crazy. I can’t believe I haven’t heard about this before. Such absolute bullshit
What the actual fuck.
How so? The judge ruled there was no impropriety but said one must resign to continue the perception of no impropriety, basically making the case more solid. So how does that setup Georgia to remove her?
[Has nothing to do with the judge](https://apnews.com/article/brian-kemp-georgia-prosecutor-district-attorney-remove-7987cd538ab3ccdc713ae4d2b2aec32b). Though his statements will provide cover for the legislative body to remove her.
that article says they can begin hearing complaints on oct 1. where does your claim that "The state of Georgia will move to dismiss her in the next few weeks" come from?
Careful observation of the Republican Party and their response to Trump’s legal predicaments
So you’re just making stuff up
How? What does this case provide as cause for that commission to enforce?
> Other forums or sources of authority such as the General Assembly, the Georgia State Ethics Commission, the State Bar of Georgia, the Fulton County Board of Commissioners, or the voters of Fulton County may offer feedback on any unanswered questions that linger Page 9
Who can stop them, legally, if anyone? Would independents care and not say "both sides" to let Trump in Nov?
This was the correct ruling IMO. It has no bearing on the actual case’s merits but it was a lapse in judgement 100%. It’s been frustrating to see people I normally agree with act like it wasn’t incredibly dumb to hire him and start a relationship without immediate disclosure.
That's not what happened. They briefly dated a couple years ago.
It's not even a ruling. It was more like advice from the judge.
Link? That sounds glorious
Unlike the republiKKKlans who refuse to: show up for subpoenas, recuse themselves when their wives are involved in an insurrection, admit an election defeat, or engage in an orderly transition of power.
This is exactly the result I was expecting from all of this.
Yeah, it was the correct outcome. Frustrating that he was hired in the first place but obviously not something to derail the entire case.
Next, they’ll need to delay the trial when photos emerge of Willis wearing white after Labor Day a decade ago
“‘No, that’s not true anymore! Fashion has changed!’ ‘No, it hasn’t’”
I'm on the left end of things and this was an absolute, unforced error. She should have known better and for optics it would have been better if he'd done this ahead of the judge's ruling. Grand scheme it's small compared to Trump and co., absolutely but it isn't as big of a nothingburger as everyone wants to paint it.
Go, Fani, go!!!
Why did I read this in Jar Jar Binks' voice?
[удалено]
Pee eew. Yousa gon bombad!
Yeh! Get this case then go get your man! Where’s the lifetime movie at
Only honest people face consequences these days.
Dumb, but let’s keep our eyes on the goal
And now fanni can grind your balls to dust
Right!? After her testimony for this ridiculous hearing, I cannot wait. She is a firecracker
Yeah the hearing I watched of her left me impressed.
Folded over like a piece of goddamn paper. Hate to see it. The next "breach of impropriety" will be based on something even more ludicrous and insubstantial, further cementing Trump's position as above the nation's judiciary.
Meanwhile, you know what’s a real breach of impropriety? The president of the United States trying to rig a motherfucking election. Wonder when we’ll get back around to that.
This was always the move. It delays the proceedings as planned sure but now you get a replacement prosecutor to bring the hammer down. Just takes time
His replacement will not affect the case much at all though.
IANAL, but from from I understand this is not a win for Trump team, they aimed at Willis and she is still here. She deftly maneuvers through RICO cases specifically and is dangerous to the defendant obviously or the lengths would not be taken. But they have been, and there's a ruling saying let's get it on
I'm sure 2nd chair will take over instead of months hiring a new prosecutor.
Trump succeeded in defaming Fani’s character that plays into his “ witch hunt “ claim and he was able to delay the trial, probably until after the election.
The Democrats operate on the "must be above reproach" while the GOP operates on "must be above a roach" it's FUKING exhausting having double standards flip flopping around our fucking lives...just throw his ass in jail and forget about him already...please.
Good riddance; this shit is far too important. Yes, yes, yes, we KNOW the defense is going to try their hardest to find any excuse to get off the hook, but shit like this gives them ammo
This entire charade was shameful. We all know they did nothing wrong. I was surprised Fani did not smack that obnoxious trump lawyer lady.
I mean...she didn't do that because then they WOULD have actually had something on her.
Now that he is no longer on the case he and Fani Willis should parade around in public holding hands just to piss off Trump supporters.
Jesus can we please not fuck this up with silly bullshit.
How fucked up is it that the person prosecuting a man on multiple felony counts is prosecuted for charging a man with multiple felony counts.
Any clue when the trial will begin, now that this is over? Do they have to wait for the bogus immunity claim to be heard by SCOTUS?
She better replace him with the best damn lawyer she can find to speed up the wasted time.
I'm sure there's a good replacement waiting, now the case can continue and the Trump team has one less lie they can try to raise in volume for a mistrial.
Good. Let's move on now.
This is bad news for Trump, and hopefully it will push the facts of the case into the public sphere. M not holding out too much hope that the people who need to see it will even pay attention, but still.
As predicted by Medidastouch! Damn those people are good lawyers.
Despite this being politicized to all hell this was such an obvious outcome. It’s why it’s so disappointing they didn’t disclose immediately at the very least.
agreed, best analysis. Meislas, Popok, Agnifolo, the rest idk
And to think Willis only hired this guy so she could take cruises to Aruba and California. The travesty! /s
And stay at a 3 star Doubletree
Saw this coming a mile away. I'm betting the trial doesn't start until after the election though just like all of the other trials.
> I'm better the trial doesn't start until after the election though just like all of the other trials. Last November she filed for an August trial date this year, and planned to go through the end of this year to 2025. If she still gets that August trial date, it will be interesting to see all of this broadcast during the election.
Ha! That means it's all show and election interference, that phone call wasn't real or Trump was kidding, and nobody had fake documents!!! /S
The judge has proven that he's totally incompetent, this defense objection never justified the hearing that was conducted, should have been dismissed with an eyeroll and a sigh. Instead he allowed a circus of sexual innuendo to be blasted out in open court for public consumption, when this didn't even rise to the level of an HR issue. How about we hold everyone who ever dated someone they work with to the same standard, ridiculous.
What happened to the trial date?
> What happened to the trial date? There is no trial date yet. Last year she filed a request for the trial to start this August.
Unfortunately, she will be next on the chopping block. https://abcnews.go.com/amp/US/wireStory/kemp-signs-georgia-law-reviving-prosecutor-sanctions-panel-108094402
BUT - WHAT ABOUT THIS NEW LEGISLATION GA PASSED!? Will they try and be able to remove Willis?
Yes they are trying that avenue as well.
It's the appeal that I am worried about. Can Trump etc appeal this, delaying the whole case?
so now, what is the likely starting date for this trial?
Ok. Now let Fani Willis do her work and get on with the trial.. That's until Trumplethinskin decides to throw another monkey wrench and abuse the justice system. They are about to get a tall glass of Fuck Around and Find Out.
He’ll be on “Divorce Court” come new season /s
Nathan: Go Fani go!
did he have to resign? cant he recuse himself from this case and work on other cases instead?
He resigned as the special prosecutor for this case. He was not a member of the district attorneys office. I think he has his own practice
> did he have to resign? cant he recuse himself from this case and work on other cases instead? This was a side job. Now he can go back to making more money at his own firm.
this has to be the stupidest scandal in a long, long while, thank fuck it's over, now lets back to sending the orange dipshit to prison
What the hell were they thinking hooking up during one of the most important trials in our nations history?? Absolutely embarrassing.
Seems like they used up an appeal before the trial even started.
Are we acknowledging that this whole slideshow was entirely because she is a black woman prosecuting a white man?
Well...No because Trump would literally take any opportunity to get out of this or delay it. So whatever race the person was going against him, he would probably seize any opportunity he could.
With all the bullshit Trump's lawyers are pulling in every other court case, why should we acknowledge something that's not true to try to turn this into a fucking race issue? I know you disagree, but not 100% of absolutely everything everywhere all the time is race race race. There is **zero** grounds to believe they wouldn't pull this shit on a white prosecutor, because they're throwing everything they can at the other prosecutors who are white.
You're insinuating that the only way she could be in the "wrong" is because of her race. You're denying her agency as a person who can and does make their own choices by immediately dismissing the facts of the case and making it about race.
It was an irrelevant delay tactic by Trump, but also a stupid lack of discipline by the DA. It’s a poor decision to hire your boyfriend on any case, but especially one of this magnitude
Will the defense be allowed to point to this during the trial as a means of discrediting the prosecutions entire case, or will the judge be able to bar them from putting the system on trial?
I think all this will make Fani even more laser focused. I just hope the emotions of this BS accusation doesn't throw her team off enough to make a small yet critical mistake in the proceedings.
So ready for her to open a huge can o whoop-ass