Aileen Cannon’s nuking of the Trump documents case continues her trend of embracing long-shot legal theories

CNN —

After a year of court hearings examining far-fetched theories about presidential classification power, flimsy accusations of prosecutorial misconduct and heated debates about redacting court filings, Judge Aileen Cannon ended Jack Smith’s classified documents prosecution of former President DonaldTrump on Monday for a more foundational – but nonetheless astonishing – reason.

She said Smith was unconstitutionally appointed as special counsel and that the funding of his office also violated the law. Her dismissal of the case on that rationale is at odds with several other court rulings from judges across the country that have upheld the Justice Department’s use of special counsels to spearhead politically sensitive investigations.

FILE - This image contained in a court filing by the Department of Justice on Aug. 30, 2022, and partially redacted by the source, shows a photo of documents seized during the Aug. 8 FBI search of former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate. Justice Department prosecutors investigating the mishandling of classified documents at Donald Trump's Florida estate are seeking to pierce the attorney-client privilege.(Department of Justice via AP, File)

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Cannon’s ruling is the climax of what was a frustrating run for the Smith team in front of the Trump-appointed trial judge in Fort Pierce, Florida. Her behavior in that case – as well as in a lawsuit brought by Trump to attack the documents investigation before he was charged – has been scrutinized by legal experts across the political spectrum.

“It’s not just that this is an extreme argument about the Appointments Clause of