CNN Panel Goes Haywire After Defense Attorney Says Democrats Targeted Trump
Criminal defense attorney Arthur Aidala sparked intense controversy during a CNN panel when he alleged that President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice and Democratic District Attorneys targeted President-elect Donald Trump for political motives.
The discussion unfolded after host Abby Phillip played a clip of Trump asserting that he would not use his Department of Justice to pursue political adversaries.
“You can laugh at that. And you can say he‘s an idiot. That‘s the president-elect making another direct threat. This is unprecedented. It‘s wrong. We should all agree it‘s wrong that he says something like that. But yes, Joe Biden should try to pardon as many people as possible to protect from a guy who said, ‘I want to be an authoritarian,’” remarked former Republican Congressman Joe Walsh, a staunch anti-Trumper, setting the stage for a heated debate.
Here’s a transcript of the exchange:
AIDALA: “I know, but, congressman, his — the Democratic administration just went after Trump and his whole family. His whole family.”
WALSH: “Wait, wait —”
PHILLIP: “Hang on. What do you mean, the Democratic administration? What are you talking about?”
CARL CHAMPION: “Yeah, which Democratic administration had gone after Trump?”
(Laughter)
AIDALA: “Last I looked, Joe Biden is a Democrat. Last I looked, the attorney general, Merrick Garland, is a Democrat.”
CHAMPION: “Okay.”
AIDALA: “They hired a special prosecutor who went after him in several jurisdictions. The Democratic Manhattan D.A. went after him. The democratic attorney general of the state of New York went after him.”
PHILLIP: “Okay, None of these things — None of these things mean what you said at the beginning.”
AIDALA: “Didn’t I say the Democratic administration —”
CHAMPION: “— went after Donald Trump and his entire family.”
AIDALA: “They did. The Democrats went after Donald Trump and his entire family.”
FORMER HILLARY CLINTON CAMPAIGN AIDE AMANDA LITMAN: “It was not President Joe Biden saying, ‘I‘m going to put Donald Trump…’”
AIDALA: “It‘s his administration. It‘s his administration. And it‘s his entire family. Ivanka had to testify. Donald Jr. had to testify. Eric had to testify.”
PHILLIP: “Trump was facing legal jeopardy in Georgia, in New York, and in a federal — in federal cases, right? One of the federal cases —”
AIDALA: “Criminal and civil.”
PHILLIP: “Okay, one of the federal cases he could have resolved like this. He could have just said, ‘Hey, come on in. Go get the documents you‘re looking for.’ The end. It would have been done.”
CHAMPION: “End of story.”
PHILLIP: “So I don‘t understand —”
AIDALA: “That case wound up being dismissed on legal grounds, on technical, legal grounds.”
PHILLIP: “Okay. No. But I don‘t —”
AIDALA: “It was. What do you mean no? It was dismissed. The federal judge dismissed it.”
PHILLIP: “The federal judge dismissed parts of the case, Arthur, you know that.”
AIDALA: “The whole federal case is gone in Florida.”
Meanwhile, Trump expressed outrage after a sentencing date was announced for his Manhattan “hush money” case, spearheaded by District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
The case, involving payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 election, has been widely criticized by legal experts, many of whom predict it will collapse on appeal.
The sentencing date, set just 10 days before Trump’s inauguration, prompted a fiery response on TruthSocial.
“Every Legal Scholar and Pundit, including the highly respected, and sadly recently passed, David Rivkin, as well as Jonathan Turley, Elie Honig, Andy McCarthy, Alan Dershowitz, Gregg Jarrett, Elizabeth Price Foley, Katie and Andy Cherkasky, Paul Ingrassia, and many others, have unequivocally stated that the Manhattan D.A.’s Witch Hunt is a nonexistent case, which is not only barred by the Statute of Limitations but, on the merits, should never have been brought,” the president-elect said after the announcement by Judge Juan Merchan.