Trump Wants ‘Nightmare’ Judge Chutkan Off His Jan. 6 Case

Donald Trump’s unhinged Sunday morning Truth Social rant played all the former president’s greatest hits. He started the day by calling Nancy Pelosi a “sick & demented psycho,” then turned his sights on “DERANGED” special counsel Jack Smith and reiterated his call for a federal takeover of “filthy and crime ridden” Washington, D.C.

He also voiced his desire to have Judge Tanya Chutkan, who was assigned to oversee Trump’s Capitol riot criminal trial in Washington, D.C., thrown off the case.

“There is no way I can get a fair trial with the judge ‘assigned’ to the ridiculous freedom of speech/fair elections case,” Trump wrote (in all caps, of course). “Everybody knows this, and so does she! We will be immediately asking for a recusal of this judge on very powerful grounds, and likewise for venue change, out if [sic] D.C.”

Chutkan has been called Trump’s “worst nightmare” by ex-prosecutor Dave Henderson, and the former president’s legal team is already feeling the heat. On Saturday, she denied a request from the Trump camp to extend a deadline for a protective order that could limit what they could publicly share about the case.

“I think the odds of [Trump] actually serving time are still next to zero,” Henderson told MSNBC on Sunday. “But Judge Chutkan is the type of judge who would sentence him to serve time because she’s going to be equitable in terms of how she treats everyone in her courtroom, and she’s already showing that with these current rulings.”

Chutkan also has a history of doling out steep sentences to Jan. 6 defendants, going above the prosecution’s recommendation nine times in her 31 Capitol riot cases.

Beyond the judge, Trump has also repeatedly voiced his displeasure with the venue. Last week, he called for the trial to be moved from D.C. to “politically unbiased” West Virginia—a state that he happened to win by 39 points in the 2020 presidential election.

Trump echoed that call on Sunday, posting on Truth Social that there’s “no way” he could get “even close to a fair trial” in D.C.

“There are many reasons for this,” he wrote—again, in all caps. “But just one is that I am calling for a federal takeover of this filthy and crime ridden embarrassment to our nation.”

John Lauro, one of Trump’s attorneys, said last week that West Virginia would be an ideal spot because it’s a “more diverse area” with a “more balanced” jury pool.

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