Jack Smith is likely headed for the court of appeals.

The recent news about possible Russian space nukes reminds us that we live in a very insecure world. That is why perhaps none of Donald Trump’s four criminal cases is more troubling than the federal prosecution brought by special counsel Jack Smith for mishandling classified documents. Unfortunately, the judge handling the case, Aileen Cannon—a last-minute appointment rushed through in the waning days of the Trump administration—has proved herself to be by far the worst of the jurists overseeing these momentous cases. Her decisions during the investigative phase of the case strayed wildly from precedent, leading to brutal reversals by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit. Now Smith appears to be preparing to ask that body to overturn at least one and possibly two of her decisions. In our view, while he is there on those other issues, he should also petition them to remove her from the case.

Why do we think Smith might be headed to the court of appeals? In part because he has already sought reconsideration for the latest of Cannon’s unlawful orders. This is a step that is warranted only in rare circumstances, including when a judge has made a “clear error” that led to “manifest injustice.” …

  • NielsBohron@lemmy.worldEnglish
    2·
    10 months ago

    I’m not familiar with the specifics of the space weapons treaty, but I do remember learning as a middle schooler that the three classifications of WMDs are nuclear, biological, and chemical, so maybe it’s no chemical weapons?

    Then again, IMO, putting chemical weapons in the same category as nuclear and biological weapons is a bit like classifying rocks as the same level of danger as assault rifles and handguns, but that’s a separate issue

      • NielsBohron@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        10 months ago

        Fair point, but I just meant that in general, chemical weapons are not in the same category as biological or nuclear warfare. But to your point about rocks in space, in the BattleTech (aka MechWarrior universe), orbital bombardment of any type is placed on the same level as nuclear warfare, which frankly makes a lot of sense.

        I think the US even had a program that looked into the feasibility of using tungsten rods dropped (launched) from satellites (partly to get around the space weapons treaty) that would have been equivalent to dropping a nuke on a city without the nasty fallout or stigma.

        • sneakattack@lemmy.ca
          2·
          10 months ago

          And if you have a lot of time on your side and with the right technological advancements for space travel you could place large rocks in fast moving large orbits that you call upon when needed. It would be an absolutely devastating amount of kinetic energy.