Judge lists the 'telltale signs' of a frivolous Trump lawsuit in scathing order
In an order granting sanctions against former President Donald Trump's legal team on Thursday in Trump v. Clinton, Florida-based federal District Judge Donald Middlebrooks outlined all of the "telltale signs" that the former president had brought a frivolous legal action.
"This case should never have been brought. Its inadequacy as a legal claim was evident from the start. No reasonable lawyer would have filed it. Intended for a political purpose, none of the counts of the amended complaint stated a cognizable legal claim," wrote Middlebrooks.
"The behavior is not unique, but part of a plan, or at least a playbook," the judge continued.
The patterns common to frivolous Trump lawsuits include "provocative and boastful rhetoric"; "a political narrative carried over from rallies"; "attacks on political opponents and the news media"; "disregard for legal principles and precedent"; and "fundraising and payments to lawyers from political action committees."
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Furthermore, he added, "when a ruling is adverse, accusations of bias on the part of judges — often while the litigation is ongoing."
Middlebrooks originally dismissed Trump v. Clinton in September of last year. Trump filed the suit against former Secretary of State and one-time presidential rival Hillary Clinton and several other people, alleging that they engaged in a plot to spread misinformation about him in the 2016 presidential campaign, falsely asserting a link between his campaign and Russia “all in the hopes of destroying his life, his political career[,] and rigging the 2016 [p]residential [e]lection in favor of Hillary Clinton.”
In reality, the Mueller Report outlined several cases in which the Trump team was helped by, or sought help from, officials linked to the Russian government, although that investigation didn't find grounds to charge a criminal conspiracy over the matter.