Judge Slaps Down RNC Lawsuit as Lacking ‘Basic Reading Comprehension’
A Trump-appointed federal judge in Georgia slapped down a lawsuit filed by the Republican National Committee on Tuesday, and gave the lawyers responsible a brutal dressing down while he did it.
Judge R. Stan Baker, who was nominated to the United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia by former President Donald Trump, tossed out a challenge filed by the RNC seeking to disqualify absentee ballots that were accepted in person by seven Democratic-leaning Georgia counties over the weekend it what they alleged was a violation of Georgia law.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger clarified several days ago that “under state law, election officials can receive absentee ballots in person at [government] facilities if the county chooses.”
In a scathing verbal reprimand documented by Lawfare, Baker told the attorneys that filed the lawsuit that their claim “does not withstand even the most basic level of statutory review and reading comprehension,” and was at certain points “factually and legally incorrect.”
Judge Baker told the court that not only would he be violating Georgia voters constitutional rights if he granted the RNC’s request, he “would only be invalidating votes from the select counties that plaintiffs have cherry-picked based on nothing more than the past political preferences of the citizens in those counties.”
“Even more concerning, I would only be invalidating votes from the select counties that plaintiffs have cherry-picked based on nothing more than the past political preferences of the citizens in those counties,” he said, adding that the RNC was attempting to “tip the scales of this election by discriminating against [counties] less likely to vote for their candidate.”
The lawsuit was filed by Alex Kaufman, a pro-Trump attorney who was involved in Trump’s 2020 efforts to pressure Georgia officials to usurp the state’s election results in favor of Trump. The attorney sat in on the infamous call where Trump pressed Raffensperger to “find” the votes needed for him to win the state, and in 2023, a Georgia grand jury recommended that Kaufman be indicted on changes related to his involvement in a fake electoral college electors scheme cooked up by Republicans in the state. Kauffman ultimately escaped criminal charges, but has apparently returned to scheming on behalf of the former president’s presidential ambitions.
Judge Baker made a point to reprimand Kauffman and his fellow attorneys. “When it comes to matters that underpin our constitutional republic, including our elections system, those of us in the legal profession owe an obligation […] that we not strike any foul blows,” he said.
“It’s dangerous when a non-lawyer makes claims that are factually or legally incorrect about the right to vote […] but a lawyer, it’s even more dangerous […] That’s why we have serious repercussions for those who violate the duty of candor,” Baker added.
More from Rolling Stone
Best of Rolling Stone
Sign up for RollingStone's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.