Judge Aileen Cannon pushes Trump’s lawyer to defend claim that special counsel is part of a ‘shadow government’

Fort Pierce, Florida CNN —

District Judge Aileen Cannon appeared skeptical of Donald Trump’s arguments that Jack Smith’s appointment as special counsel didn’t meet constitutional requirements, but she also displayed what has been a common distrust of the prosecutors during a day-long session Friday.

Trump is arguing that Smith – who has brought charges against Trump in Florida and Washington, DC – was unlawfully appointed as special counsel.

At the center of Trump’s argument is the claim that the Attorney General Merrick Garland does not have legal authority to appoint someone as special counsel who hasn’t confirmed by the Senate. The Justice Department says the attorney general has ample authority to appoint “inferior officers,” which would include special counsels.

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Cannon, prepared with question after question for both the defense attorney and prosecutors, on Friday pushed Trump’s lawyer to defend his claim that Smith’s position amounted to a “shadow government.”

“That sounds very ominous,” Cannon said to Trump attorney Emil Bove. “But what do you really mean?”

Bove did not directly answer the question, but he repeated the argument that Smith was inappropriately appointed. He also said that there should be an additional hearing over the issue, which could include testimony about the relationship between Garland and Smith, arguing that the two have said Smith is acting independently and not under the direction of Garland.

Cannon noted there is a regulatory system that Smith must still adhere to – to which Bove retorted that Smith still wasn’t reporting to