Federal Judge Rules Trump Sued Himself to Manipulate Courts for $10 Billion
"A federal judge down in Florida, Judge Katherine Williams, just ruled that Donald Trump brought a bogus lawsuit to quote, 'Manipulate the judicial process.' Close quote. You know, this is the kind of thing that I don't think we've ever seen a federal judge say about a president of the United States."
About this episode
Brian Tyler Cohen and former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner discuss a bombshell 56-page ruling by Federal Judge Katherine Williams finding that President Donald Trump fraudulently manipulated the judicial system through a self-dealing lawsuit. The case involved Trump suing his own IRS for $10 billion, with the Department of Justice never filing a response during the suit's 109-day existence before Trump dismissed it and negotiated a settlement with himself. The settlement included $1.776 billion in taxpayer funds intended as what Kirschner calls a "cop beaters fund" for January 6th defendants, plus permanent immunity from IRS audits and tax prosecutions for Trump, his family members, and his businesses. Judge Williams found there was no actual adversarial relationship between the parties since Trump controlled both sides, violating constitutional requirements for federal jurisdiction. The judge took the extraordinary step of referring one of Trump's attorneys to the Florida State Bar for ethics investigation, barring another from practicing in federal court for one year, and suggesting Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche should be investigated for unethical conduct. Kirschner explains that the judge's findings that there was no case or controversy and no true adversarial relationship may prevent the ruling from being appealed, though Trump will likely attempt to escalate to the Supreme Court. Despite this case, Kirschner maintains optimism that the federal judiciary is largely holding strong as a check against executive overreach, pointing to consistent rulings against Trump from trial judges appointed by presidents from both parties, though he identifies the Supreme Court as the primary wild card.
Key takeaways
- Federal Judge Katherine Williams ruled Trump brought a bogus lawsuit to manipulate the judicial process for $10 billion in taxpayer funds and personal tax immunity.
- Trump sued his own IRS with no DOJ response for 109 days, then settled with himself for $1.776 billion plus audit immunity for family and businesses.
- Judge Williams referred one Trump attorney to Florida State Bar for ethics investigation and barred another from federal court practice for one year.
- The judge found no constitutional case or controversy existed since Trump controlled both parties in the lawsuit, potentially preventing appeal.
- Judge Williams suggested Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche should be investigated for potentially unethical conduct and collusion in the scheme.
- Former prosecutor Glenn Kirschner warns allowing this manipulation could enable Trump to claim unlimited taxpayer funds through fraudulent self-dealing lawsuits.
- Despite Supreme Court concerns, Kirschner maintains federal trial and appellate judges are largely holding strong against Trump's autocratic efforts and constitutional violations.