A state judge has ruled that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis can continue to lead the Georgia case against former President Donald Trump, but only if her subordinate and romantic partner Nathan Wade is removed from the case.
The bombshell decision, promised by Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee for release today, offers Willis a narrow path forward after revelations that she was carrying on a clandestine affair with Wade and potentially perjured themselves when both testified that their private relationship only began after Wade was hired. If Wade cannot be extricated from the case, then Willis must do so herself, according to theIn his attempt to find a middle ground, McAfee wrote that his decision was premised on the idea that “disqualification of a constitutional officer [is not] necessary when a less drastic and sufficiently remedial option is available.” However, he added it is obvious “that the prosecution of this case cannot proceed until the State selects one of two options.” Either “the District Attorney may choose to step aside, along with the whole of her office” or “Wade can withdraw” allowing the case to proceed without further distraction.Although the decision is not total vindication for President Trump and his 14 co-defendants, Willis has emerged badly damaged as a result of self-inflicted wounds that will also cost her reviews by the U.S. House and a new Georgia panel with the power to remove prosecutors who abuse the powers of office. She has also garnered a Republican opponent for her election later this year.The move comes shortly after Judge McAfee quashed six charges in the case for all defendants, including three for President Trump, related to the pressuring of state officials to violate their oaths of office. Prosecutors previously charged Trump over a statement made to Republican Secretary of State Ben Raffensperger allegedly demanding he “find” over 11,000 votes to change the outcome of the state’s 2020 election.
Should Willis proceed in the case, she now finds herself mired in a backlog of delays across President Trump’s four criminal cases which legal observers believe may be enough to push most or all trials well past Election Day. Should he win another term in the White House, it is expected that President Trump would use executive authority to dismiss, at the very least, the two federal cases he is facing.
