Nice Supreme Court you have there. Be a shame if something happened to it.
Speaking on Sean Hannity’s Fox News program, Donald Trump attorney Alina Habba didn’t make her threats quite that explicit, but she came close. In discussing the court’s review of the Colorado Supreme Court’s removal of Donald Trump from the state’s primary ballot, which was based on his violation of the 14th Amendment by supporting an insurrection, Habba made it clear that she expected justices appointed by Trump to “step up” and give him the ruling he wants.
In particular, Habba singled out Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
“You know, people like Kavanaugh,” Habba said to Hannity, “who the president fought for, who the president went through hell to get into place, he’ll step up.”
If that sounds like an explicit demand for a quid pro quo, that’s because it is.
Habba’s reference to Kavanaugh comes as Trump has multiple cases either already at the Supreme Court or soon to arrive there. It’s an obvious attempt to remind “Justice Beer” that Trump did not let him go during his sobbing appearance before the Senate, following testimony that accused him of committing sexual assault.
Habba’s demand doesn’t just serve to remind Trump’s Supreme Court appointees that they owe him for their lifetime of black robes; it also lets them know that Trump could withdraw his favor. Which they might not enjoy. Like, maybe Kavanaugh wouldn’t appreciate being on the receiving end of the death threats Trump supporters are now delivering to members of the Colorado court.
The result of this obvious attempt to strong-arm the court is that any ruling in Trump’s favor will be looked on as suspect. No matter the justification, a ruling for Trump will seem as if the court were agreeing to give him the payoff Habba demanded. And at a time when the legitimacy of the court is very much in question, this sets up a situation where every ruling for Trump will be seen as another crack in what remains of that legitimacy.
Considering the number of cases Trump will surely have in front of the Supreme Court over the next year, that’s a lot of potential cracks. Of course, the court could just hand Trump his ridiculous claim of total immunity and get it all over at once.
If Kavanaugh or any of the other conservative justices have any interest in upholding even a pretense of legitimacy, what Habba did just made it harder for them to rule for Trump. But then, Habba’s explanation of her personal philosophy may provide a clue as to why she would make such a blunt, counterproductive statement.
In case you’ve lost track, Habba is not the Trump attorney who was previously fired from traffic court. That was Jenna Ellis. No, Habba is the one who filed suits against Hillary Clinton and others whom Trump saw as opponents, suits that were so ridiculous that she and Trump ended up paying a nearly $1 million fine for a “pattern of abuse of the courts.” She’s that Trump attorney.
She’s also the Trump attorney who recently reached an out-of-court settlement after a former employee sued her for allegedly creating a hostile, racist work environment. That included Habba using the N-word around the office and calling New York Attorney General Letitia James “that Black bitch” in meetings.
All of this makes it seem that when Habba says she can “fake being smart,” she’s not doing it as well as she thinks. Though she really seemed to have earned her spot as an “F-tier” lawyer:
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