NEWS: Sens. Schiff, Blumenthal Lead Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats in Amicus Brief Supporting Appeal of Judge Cannon’s Order Blocking Release of Volume II of Jack Smith’s[...]

Senators: "the district court's apparent mistrust of Congress…is not a substitute for evidence"

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) led every Democratic member of the Senate Judiciary Committee in filing an amicus brief in support of the release of Volume II of Special Counsel Jack Smith's final report on investigation into Donald Trump's misuse of classified documents.

Two decisions by Judge Aileen Cannon related to her prohibiting the release of Volume II are being appealed to the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals.

"Volume II's subject matter-the handling of classified materials after President Trump's departure from office, and the conduct of persons now nominated to lead the very agencies charged with protecting those materials-is precisely the type of information that Congress's advice-and-consent and oversight functions require. The district court's conclusion that no constitutional function was implicated, entered at the very moment the Committee was seeking Volume II to faithfully execute its advice-and-consent and oversight roles, was mistaken," the Senators wrote.

The Senators refute Judge Cannon's claim that Congress is not seeking the release of Volume II, while pointing out the DOJ only supported her decision after Trump's personal defense attorneys like Todd Blanche and Emil Bove were installed at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).

The Senators also remind the court that Trump lawyers being on both sides of the case raises serious concerns about the district court ruling and its justification.

"The district court granted the requests of defendants and DOJ-now helmed by former defense counsel-to block the release of the Report, despite intervenors' repeated assertions of statutory, common law, and constitutional interest in its release. The lack of adversity between the parties and the unusual reversals in the government's position raise serious prudential concerns about the soundness of the district court's decisions," the Senators wrote.

The Senators directly refute Judge Cannon's concerns that Congress is not seeking the report and that sharing it with Congress would lead to its improper release.

"Despite the district court's assertions otherwise, Members of Congress-particularly Minority Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee-had made repeated official requests for the Special Counsel Report," the Senators wrote."Notwithstanding the district court's apparent mistrust of Congress, which is not a substitute for evidence, Congress regularly successfully handles sensitive documents provided by the Executive Branch, including classified materials. The proposition that a Special Counsel's final report should be made available to Congress, in redacted form as necessary, is not a novel or contested one."

In October, Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats urged the Committee's Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) to request DOJrelease an unredacted copy of Volume II, as well as allow Jack Smith to testify under oath before the committee.

The full text of the brief can be found here.

The brief was signed by Schiff, Blumenthal, Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.).

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