Lawyers for former President Donald Trump have proposed April 2026 as the date to start the trial in the case involving his efforts to challenge the results of the 2020 election.
“The government’s objective is clear: to deny President Trump and his counsel a fair ability to prepare for trial. The Court should deny the government’s request,” the lawyers wrote. “The public interest lies in justice and fair trial, not a rush to judgment.”
To support their arguments for a 2026 trial date, President Trump’s lawyers pointed to the “enormous and growing” volume of materials that need to be reviewed, the unusual and complex nature of the case, and the former president’s busy legal calendar for 2024.
“This case is not just complex or unusual. It is terra incognita,” the lawyers wrote. “No president has ever been charged with a crime for conduct committed while in office. No major party presidential candidate has ever been charged while in the middle of a campaign—and certainly not by a Justice Department serving his opponent.
‘11.5 Million Pages’
There are over 11.5 million pages of discovery from Mr. Smith’s office, according to the lawyers.“To put 11.5 million pages in some perspective, we began downloading the government’s initial production on August 13, 2023. Two days later, it was still downloading,” they wrote.
“Nonetheless, even assuming we could begin reviewing the documents today, we would need to proceed at a pace of 99,762 pages per day to finish the government’s initial production by its proposed date for jury selection,” they continued. “That is the entirety of Tolstoy’s War and Peace, cover to cover, 78 times a day, every day, from now until jury selection.”
“President Trump must prepare for each of these trials in the coming months. All are independently complex and will require substantial work to defend. Several will likely require President Trump’s presence at some or all trial proceedings,” the lawyers wrote.
“Without question, President Trump’s obligation to diligently prepare for this case does not end because of other pending matters,” the lawyers added, “However, the Court may, and should, consider the practical effects these parallel prosecutions will have on President Trump’s ability to meet the extraordinarily brief deadlines the government proposes.”
‘I’m Your Man’
Also Thursday, President Trump took to his Truth Social account to address the question of whether he should take part in the Republican Party’s first primary debate, to be hosted by Fox News on Aug. 23 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.“Many people are asking whether or not I will be doing the DEBATES? ALL AMERICANS have been clamoring for a President of extremely High Intelligence. As everyone is aware, my Poll numbers, over a ‘wonderful’ field of Republican candidates, are extraordinary,” the former president wrote.
“People know my Record, one of the BEST EVER, so why would I Debate? I’M YOUR MAN. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” he added, referring to his popular campaign slogan.
According to the latest poll by JMC Analytics, President Trump leads the GOP field with 52 percent of support, a commanding lead over runner-up Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who picked up 13 percent of support.
Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy finished third with 5 percent of support, followed by former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie with 4.5 percent. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) finished in fifth place with 4.1 percent of support, leading former Vice President Mike Pence by 0.6 percentage points.
The poll was conducted with 1,100 likely Republican primary voters from Aug. 14 to 17.
In a hypothetical two-way matchup, President Trump topped Mr. DeSantis 54 percent to 29 percent. The remaining 17 percent of those polled said they were undecided.
“In summary, former President Trump remains the dominant player in the Republican field, and no one has yet been able to establish himself/herself as a credible alternative as long as Trump is on the ballot,” the poll concluded.
