CNN Guest Says Trump-Appointed Judge Should ‘Voluntarily’ Step Aside

A former federal prosecutor said Wednesday that United States District Court Judge Aileen Cannon should “voluntarily recuse” herself from the criminal case involving former President Donald Trump.

“If I were Judge Cannon, I would voluntarily recuse myself,” former federal prosecutor Michael Zeldin said on “CNN News Central.” “I don’t think she needs this. Two and a half years into her judgeship having been reversed resoundingly by the 11th Circuit in a previous aspect of this case, if I were her, I’d want nothing to do with this case.”

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Trump entered a plea of “not guilty” to all counts during his arraignment Tuesday, after the special counsel secured a grand jury indictment on 37 counts, including violations of the Espionage Act, that was unsealed Friday.

Cannon, who Trump appointed to the federal bench in May 2020, will reportedly preside over the criminal case brought against Trump over the handling of classified documents. Cannon previously ordered the appointment of a special master to review documents seized during the Aug. 8 raid on Mar-a-Lago, the Florida estate Trump owns, but the ruling was later overturned on appeal.

“But if she decides she wants to take it and redeem herself, if you will, I don’t think there are legal grounds to recuse her,” Zeldin said. “I know people think there are, but I’m not one who agrees with that.”