美国国家公共电台 NPR--Trump and the Justice Department have submitted picks for a special master. Now what?

Trump¹ and the Justice Department have submitted picks for a special master. Now what?

Transcript²

The Justice Department and lawyers representing former president Donald Trump continue to tussle³ over his request for a special master to review the materials seized from Mar-a-Lago.

It's not just that the two sides don't see eye to eye about whether a special master should be part of the proceedings⁴ in the first place — they disagree on fundamental details including who should fill the role, how long the process should take and who should cover the costs, as a joint⁵ court filing submitted on Friday reveals.

Responding on Monday to the DOJ's latest attempt to block the move, Trump's lawyers reaffirmed their call for a special master to review the recovered documents, which they said may not actually be classified.

They described the criminal investigation⁶ as a document storage dispute that's gotten out of control, and said Trump has an "unfettered right" to access those presidential records. Federal prosecutors⁷ say the special master proceedings are harming national security by preventing them from using classified material in their criminal probe.

Each side submitted two picks to be special master for the case on Friday, after U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon⁸ approved Trump's request.

The Justice Department has proposed two former federal judges for the job: Barbara Jones (appointed by Bill Clinton) and Thomas Griffith (a George W. Bush appointee). Trump's picks are senior federal Judge Raymond J. Dearie (appointed by Ronald Reagan) and Paul Huck, Jr. (a conservative lawyer who has served in Florida state government).

Both parties were instructed to respond to each other's candidates today. In a filing Monday afternoon, Trump's lawyers objected to the DOJ's candidates but said that they want to state those objections in front of the judge.

Hours later, the Justice Department submitted a filing rejecting Huck, but saying that Dearie would be acceptable. They noted⁹ that he is not fully¹⁰ retired¹¹ as the Trump team had asserted, but holds a semi-retired senior status and asked the court to consider "whether the special master role would constitute outside employment and what rules and/or restrictions¹², if any, would apply to his serving in this capacity."

The government lawyers also said they had reached out to Dearie on Monday who confirmed he would be available to complete the work "expeditiously¹³."

Essentially¹⁴, the two camps were telling Cannon whether they have agreed on a candidate or whether she is going to have to make that decision, as former U.S. Attorney Chuck Rosenberg tells Morning Edition's A Martínez.

"The whole idea here — and I get what Judge Cannon was trying to do, although I don't think she did a particularly good job of it — was to give this process the imprimatur of neutrality, to find a third party, an outsider, somebody with no stake in the outcome to make a review of the documents that were seized and make certain determinations," Rosenberg adds. "I guess any of these people would be fine, but that sort of begets¹⁵ another question ... which is whether you need a special master at all to begin with, and I'm not sure you do."

When choosing a candidate, experience and clearance¹⁶ are key

Rosenberg believes there are two main criteria¹⁷ that Cannon will take into consideration when deciding whom to appoint as special master.

"The nominees¹⁸ for the job ... all strike me as okay, but experience and the ability to hold and maintain a security clearance would be foremost among their qualifications," he says.

Security clearance is important because there might be classified documents at issue. Rosenberg stresses the word "might" because the Justice Department doesn't believe that the special master should be overseeing that particular part of the case. And he says former federal judges all have experience handling these sorts of issues, which is important too.

The timeline is another point of contention¹⁹

If the Justice Department had its way there wouldn't be a special master at all, Rosenberg points out. He says the department wants to expedite the process so that it can resume its investigation into the obstruction²⁰ and mishandling of government secrets, because "investigations²¹ don't get better with age."

"That's a way of thinking about the Trump team's position," he adds. "Typically for subjects of investigations, for defendants²², delay helps because, again, cases don't get better with age."

All roads lead back to the original investigation

Cannon ruled that the Justice Department can't use the seized documents in its criminal investigation until the special master has completed their work. At the same time, she said the intelligence community can continue its review of potential national security risks.

Can those threads be untangled? The government says no. And Rosenberg, who calls this issue "probably the most important aspect" of the case, agrees.

"From my perspective ... they're one in the same," he says. "How do you do a damage assessment²³ unless the FBI is permitted to continue its criminal investigation [into] if documents were passed, for instance? That's something the intelligence community would need to know."

Rosenberg concludes: "It seems like an artificial distinction and the most problematic aspect of Judge Cannon's ruling."

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 tussle   

n.&v.扭打，搏斗，争辩

参考例句：

• They began to tussle with each other for the handgun.他们互相扭打起来，抢夺那支手枪。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

4 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

5 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

6 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

7 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

8 cannon   

n.大炮，火炮；飞机上的机关炮

参考例句：

• The soldiers fired the cannon.士兵们开炮。
• The cannon thundered in the hills.大炮在山间轰鸣。

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

10 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

11 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

12 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

13 expeditiously   

adv.迅速地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• They have to be evaluated expeditiously, carefully with the patient fully UNDRESSED. 我看过许多的枪伤患者，但是就只有阿扁的伤口没有上述情形，真是天佑台湾。 来自互联网
• We will expeditiously facilitate trade transactions with the utmost professionalism. 我们会尽快贸易便利化的交易与最大的专业水平。 来自互联网

14 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

15 begets   

v.为…之生父( beget的第三人称单数 )；产生，引起

参考例句：

• It begets at least seven standard type offspring from such matings. 这类交配中生下至少七个标准型后代。 来自辞典例句
• Violence begets violence until the innocent perish with the guilty. 暴力招致暴力直到这因罪行而无缘无故的毁灭。 来自电影对白

16 clearance   

n.净空；许可(证)；清算；清除，清理

参考例句：

• There was a clearance of only ten centimetres between the two walls.两堵墙之间只有十厘米的空隙。
• The ship sailed as soon as it got clearance. 那艘船一办好离港手续立刻启航了。

17 criteria   

n.标准

参考例句：

• The main criterion is value for money.主要的标准是钱要用得划算。
• There are strict criteria for inclusion in the competition.参赛的标准很严格。

18 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

19 contention   

n.争论，争辩，论战；论点，主张

参考例句：

• The pay increase is the key point of contention. 加薪是争论的焦点。
• The real bone of contention,as you know,is money.你知道，争论的真正焦点是钱的问题。

20 obstruction   

n.阻塞，堵塞；障碍物

参考例句：

• She was charged with obstruction of a police officer in the execution of his duty.她被指控妨碍警察执行任务。
• The road was cleared from obstruction.那条路已被清除了障碍。

21 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

22 defendants   

被告( defendant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The courts heard that the six defendants had been coerced into making a confession. 法官审判时发现6位被告人曾被迫承认罪行。
• As in courts, the defendants are represented by legal counsel. 与法院相同，被告有辩护律师作为代表。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

23 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？