Habba the Nutt*

Alina Habba is Trump’s former personal lawyer and a MAGA influencer, who was installed as interim U.S. attorney for New Jersey about four months ago, despite no prosecutorial experience. She immediately politicized the office, opening investigations into the sitting governor and attorney general and charging Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-NJ) with assault for an incident at a Newark ICE detention facility. She has said in interviews that her role as a federal prosecutor would be to help “turn New Jersey red.”

But Habba had a problem: The Federal Vacancies Reform Act (FVRA) only gave her a 120-day window to perform the duties of the office in an interim capacity. Though Habba was nominated on July 1 to serve permanently as U.S. attorney, New Jersey’s senators have thus far blocked her from consideration. As last Friday’s deadline approached, Habba petitioned a three-judge panel to allow her to stay in the position. But the judges used their authority under the vacancy laws to reject that request and instead appointed Desiree Leigh Grace, the first assistant U.S. attorney.

  Prospect

You know where this is going. Trump doesn't have to acknowledge any court other than SCOTUS (and that hasn't yet been tested).

The administration then maneuvered to keep Habba in the job. The law prevents someone from being an acting U.S. attorney and nominated for the post at the same time. But Habba resigned as interim U.S. attorney, and Trump withdrew her nomination for the post. Then, Attorney General Pam Bondi fired Grace and hired Habba as first assistant U.S. attorney in her place. Therefore, under the vacancy rules, Habba could become the acting U.S. attorney in New Jersey for another 210 days.

It's not over, though.

[Julien Giraud Jr.] had a criminal trial set in New Jersey for August 4 on federal gun and drug charges. But his attorney, Thomas Mirigliano, filed a motion seeking to dismiss the charges on the grounds that Habba isn’t the real U.S. attorney.

“Ms. Habba’s re-appointment directly violates the FVRA, which explicitly prohibits individuals whose nominations have been submitted to the Senate from serving in an acting capacity for the same office, regardless of subsequent withdrawal of the nomination,” Mirigliano wrote in the filing.

That doesn't seem right. But, hey, litigate away.

The case is now in the hands of a judge in Pennsylvania. Obviously, if one defendant succeeds in getting his federal case thrown out in New Jersey, every subsequent defendant will try the same tactic. While the courts might ultimately rule that prosecutorial authority is not diminished by breaking the vacancy rules, at the very least thousands of cases could screech to a halt for months.

Not great.  But I want to see a lawsuit brought by the three-judge panel that declined her petition to stay in office.

*Sorry, I don't remember who I stole that from.