New York Times column calls to expand federal judiciary following Trump Mar-a-Lago case
Jamelle Bouie said that 'partisan solutions' are needed to combat 'hyperpartisan' judges
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A New York Times columnist called for the federal judiciary to be expanded following the actions of "hyperpartisan" Judge Aileen Cannon in The Trump Mar-a-Lago classified documents case.
In the Friday piece entitled "The Wrong Trump Judge at the Right Time Can Wreak Havoc," columnist Jamelle Bouie wrote politicians and the media must stop pretending that the political affiliation of a judge or justice do not matter, and that such a convention is ill-equipped to deal with "hyperpartisan, ideological" judges.
Writing that Cannon has behaved more as a Trump ally than an impartial judge, Bouie claimed the judge’s grant to appoint a special master in the case "made no sense." Bouie also claimed this was the position of legal commentators from "across the political spectrum," linking to another Times piece.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Youngstown, Ohio., Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022. (AP Photo/Tom E. Puskar) (AP )
The columnist noted that not all Trump appointees is an "ideologue in robes," but there are enough of them in the mix that it could cause a catastrophe under the right conditions.
"Thankfully, there is a solution, and it only takes a simple vote of Congress. Expand and reorganize the federal court system," Bouie said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Such a move is "practical" since the size of the country has increased since 1990 when Congress made its last expansion, according to Bouie.
"Congress, and here I mean Democrats, should go further with a court expansion to rival Carter’s. They should create new circuits, new courts and new judgeships," he added. "The goal is simple: to account for growth and to deal with the problem of a cohort of hyperpartisan and ideological judges whose loyalty to Trump may outweigh their commitment to the law."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The New York Times building in New York City, New York. (DON EMMERT/AFP via Getty Images)
Bouie admitted that such a move would be partisan in nature, but sometimes partisan problems require partisan solutions.
In early September, Cannon said an independent special master be appointed to review the records seized by the FBI during its raid of former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago home and ordered the Justice Department stop its own review of the material for investigative purposes.
Following this ruling, left-leaning media figures cried foul and suggested the judge was in Trump’s pocket.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Trump—he always looks at things as my or mine. My generals, my Kevin, my classified documents, my judges. Apparently he’s got one," far-left MSNBC host Joy Reid said at the time.
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Local law enforcement officers are seen in front of the home of former President Donald Trump at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida on Aug. 9, 2022. (GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images)
She then turned to frequent network guest and The Nation correspondent Elie Mystal who said that the judge was "biased and corrupt," and that she does not believe in the rule of law.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}MSNBC legal analyst Andrew Weissman also weighed in on the decision to appoint a special master. He claimed the ruling seemed "so out of the ordinary" and did little to help "people’s confidence" in the case, if it appeared Trump was receiving "special rules."
"It isn’t the case that because you’re the former president, you get more justice. You should get equal justice. You shouldn’t be treated worse, but he shouldn’t be treated better," he added.