Trump Blindsided by New Lawsuit as Prosecutor Destroys Evidence?!

Summary

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Legal AF (MeidasTouch) – Episode Summary

Episode Title: Trump Blindsided by New Lawsuit as Prosecutor Destroys Evidence?!
Air Date: October 28, 2025
Hosts: Michael Popok, Ben Meiselas, Karen Friedman Agnifilo
Main Theme:
This episode dives deep into fresh legal trouble surrounding Lindsey Halligan, the recently appointed U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. The hosts analyze two major developments: an impending lawsuit regarding Halligan's use of the Signal “disappearing messages” app while conducting official business, and consolidated legal challenges against her appointment. Through expert commentary and primary-source insights, the podcast dissects the intersection of legal process, prosecutorial responsibility, and political controversy at the highest levels.

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Key Discussion Points & Timeline

1. Lindsey Halligan Under Fire for Disappearing Messages

[02:29]–[06:48]

• Overview: Lindsey Halligan, an inexperienced attorney handpicked by Donald Trump as interim U.S. Attorney, is now the subject of an impending lawsuit and mounting criticism for allegedly violating the Federal Records Act.
• Incident: Halligan admitted to a reporter (Anna Bauer) that she used Signal, a disappearing message app, for official communication about an ongoing federal case.
  • Notable Quote (Michael Popok, 02:29):
    “You can't use disappearing messaging, invisible ink for public records.”
• Legal Action: Watchdog American Oversight made a public records request—the precursor to litigation—citing parallels to a similar Trump-era scandal involving Signal and federal officials discussing sensitive operations.
• Involved Parties: The request is directed at Marco Rubio (acting archivist under Trump), referencing the need for record preservation and highlighting past involvement with Signal controversies.

2. Journalism and Risks in Prosecutorial Communication

[06:48]–[09:10]

• Reporter’s Perspective:
  • Anna Bauer, the journalist involved, discusses the unusual and risky nature of Halligan’s outreach, emphasizing the dangers of prosecutors speaking to media about active prosecutions.
  • Notable Quote (Anna Bauer, 07:18):
    “This is the kind of thing that is so risky for a prosecutor to do... there can be a host of consequences for talking to a reporter about an ongoing prosecution, which is why prosecutors typically don't do it.”

3. Breaking Down the Lawsuit's Implications

[09:10]–[10:58]

• Misconduct & Record Keeping: Halligan’s use of Signal is characterized not only as unlawful destruction of public records but also as an attempt to chill press freedom and influence reporting, raising First Amendment issues.
  • Host Analysis (Michael Popok, 10:58):
    “Halligan's admission... that the Signal conversation was set to disappear suggests that she used Signal for the purposes of creating records that could not be retained. That's a flagrant violation of the Federal Records Act.”
• Press Interaction Example: Multiple hostile or dismissive messages from Halligan to Anna Bauer spotlight the improper, possibly intimidating tone toward the press.

4. Legal Maneuvering Over Halligan’s Appointment

[10:58]–[14:45]

• Consolidated Legal Challenges:
  • Two motions to remove Halligan (from James Comey and Letitia James) on grounds of illegal appointment are being merged and reassigned to a federal judge outside Halligan’s district, avoiding conflicts of interest.
  • These challenges reference the Vacancy Reform Act and broader DOJ hiring rules.
  • Host Commentary (Michael Popok, 12:54):
    “This is the reason you don't appoint a novice, inexperienced lawyer who's never been a federal prosecutor before to be one of the top five prosecutors in the Department of Justice overnight. You just... It's not insta prosecutor. Just add water. Send her in.”
• Judicial Assignment: The cases are now with Judge Cameron McGowan Curry, a Clinton appointee from South Carolina and former DOJ official, heightening the stakes for Halligan’s tenuous position.

5. Insider Reflections on the Prosecutorial Mistake

[14:45]–[15:55]

• Analysis of Halligan's Inexperience:
  • Anna Bauer, in a follow-up interview, and the hosts ponder how Halligan could repeat errors well-known from both media and legal circles, given her previous exposure as a public-facing legal figure for Trump.
  • Repeat Signal app mishaps from the Trump team's earlier years are cited as clear cautionary tales, making Halligan’s conduct even more confounding.
  • Insight (Michael Popok, 15:35):
    “We're all sort of scratching our heads here about how dumb they are in their conduct and behavior.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Federal Records Act Violations:
  Michael Popok, 02:29:
  “You can't use disappearing messaging, invisible ink for public records.”

• Journalist-Source Dynamic Caution:
  Anna Bauer, 07:18:
  “This is the kind of thing that is so risky for a prosecutor to do... host of consequences for talking to a reporter about an ongoing prosecution.”

• First Amendment and Intimidation:
  Michael Popok, 10:58 (paraphrasing American Oversight letter):
  “… may be especially appropriate for preservation as a potential evidence of an implicit threat… forms of government coercion for First Amendment analysis.”

• On Novice Prosecutors in Top Posts:
  Michael Popok, 12:54:
  “This is the reason you don't appoint a novice, inexperienced lawyer... It's not insta prosecutor. Just add water. Send her in.”

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Timeline of Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment Topic | |-----------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 02:29 | Introduction to Halligan’s Signal messaging and upcoming lawsuit | | 06:48 | Anna Bauer interview: journalistic risks and Halligan’s press conduct | | 09:10 | Legal basis and implications of violating federal record-keeping | | 10:58 | Efforts to remove Halligan due to improper appointment; lawsuit consolidated | | 12:54 | Discussion of Halligan’s qualifications and process flaws | | 15:35 | Hosts’ reflections on the repeated mistakes by the Trump legal team |

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Overall Tone & Closing Thoughts

The episode maintains a sharp, analytical, and sometimes incredulous tone, with the hosts blending legal expertise and pointed critique. They highlight the repetitive, avoidable mistakes unfolding at the heart of politically sensitive prosecutions—underscoring both legal process and the broader battle over government transparency, press freedom, and competency in federal appointments.

Listeners are reminded how lessons from previous scandals appear to go unheeded, raising serious legal and ethical questions for those entrusted with public power.

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Transcript

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B R-I K.com Lindsey Halligan and trouble just seem to go together because Lindsey Halligan, the novice prosecutor in the Eastern District of Virginia handpicked by Donald Trump to go after his political enemies, she's in trouble again in two different ways. I'm going to cover it right here for you on the Midas Touch Network and for legal af. Firstly, there's a lawsuit brewing. That's a legal term about her use admitted use of the Signal Disappearing Message app as a federal official about federal records which are her messages and that all blew out into the open. Came out into the open because there is an article that was written by reporter Anna Bauer, a friend of Legal AF who I just recently interviewed, in which in that exchange, Lindsey Halligan admitted a number of things. It was unsolicited. She reached out to the reporter without going off the record, and she said, I'm going to comment effectively. I'm going to comment about the Letitia James prosecution that I alone are handling. I'm going to comment about the grand jury, I'm going to comment about your reporting, and I'm going to use a disappearing messaging app to do it. Okay? That became the heart and soul of a motion that was filed by Letitia James saying she needs to be gagged. Lindsey Halligan. And because of the use of her reaching out to the press and commenting about evidence, that has to stop. But then American Oversight, who brought a similar lawsuit against the federal government at the beginning of the Trump administration, when Mike Waltz, the National Security Advisor, used the Signal app, the same app, disappearing messages and all, to talk among insiders in the government about a planned attack or bombing on the Houthis of Yemen, about a trade port issue going on there. And Mike Waltz pulled together Marco Rubio and Tulsi Gabbard and Stephen Miller and the vice president and all these people, but he also either fat thumbed it or he did it on purpose. He added Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor in chief of the Atlantic magazine, who was there like a fly on the wall watching the Signal chat about the Houthi bombing attack. Everybody got in trouble. Mike Waltz got fired and made the ambassador to Iceland. And there was this lawsuit about the use of the Signal app. So Lindsay Halligan knows better. Now, American Oversight, the same entity, is going after and has made a public records request which is the prerequisite before you bring the lawsuit. And the lawsuit's coming, sent to listen to this Marco Rubio, why? Because he's the acting archivist of the United States. Donald Trump's fired all the people that know what they're doing. He's in charge of federal public records. He was also on the Signal chat the last time around. So here's what the letter says, using as the basis the interaction between Lindsey Allegan and Anna Bauer, the reporter. And I'm going to show you a clip of my interview with Anna Bauer on this very issue. Let's start with the letter American Oversight Rights, to bring to your attention the potential unlawful destruction or removal of federal records of interim United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Lindsey Halligan. In violation of the Federal Records act, you can't use disappearing messaging, invisible ink for public records. Specifically, Interim U.S. attorney Halligan appears to have removed or destroyed messages exchanged with a legal journalist, Anna Bauer, via the commercial messaging application, meaning not secure signal, where Halligan apparently attempted to influence news coverage of a federal prosecution and specifically referred to her role as lead prosecutor in, in the conversation. In fact, let me show you the clip of my interview with Anna Bauer on this very issue. And there's another interview that I've done of her that's up on Legal AF this week as well. Let's play the Anna Bauer clip.

[B]

Yeah, so look, I mean we, we knew that there was a story here, but of course we wanted to make sure that we were diligently fact checking everything we needed to confirm that it really was her. It took us a few days to obtain her phone number and, and you know, make sure that, and confirm that it really was her. We went through the process, as I said, of speaking with experts who can, could speak to us about how unusual this story is. And then also, you know, I was not entirely sure whether she was done talking to me. And a part of, like a part of journalism, you know, it is just trying to see whether there is a possibility of a relationship there. And we had to make a decision like we've got something that's clearly newsworthy, but also it. Does she really want to open a line of communication with me? Because at the beginning of the conversation, even though she was, you know, expressing her dissatisfaction with my reporting, she also said at one point, before you report, feel free to reach out. And that's an incredible like, you know, opening for, you know, I'm reporting on these cases. So of course, if the U.S. attorney is offering for me to reach out to her and ask her questions about the case that she personally is prosecuting of, of course I'm going to try to see and feel it out. And we're, and we're on the record and she's offering to answer questions. So it, for a few days I tried to see if she was serious about that. It quickly became clear to me that she was not. You know, she started, I don't know if maybe she just thought better of, of what she was doing and the outreach, but she started stop responding to my messages. And, and so then we started going through the process, you know, of writing the story. But I just really want to underscore that like this is the kind of thing that is so risky for a prosecutor to do. You know there can be a host of consequences for talking to a reporter on about an ongoing prosecution, which is why prosecutors typically don't do it.

[C]

That was just a day after her published article came out. Talking about it. Now this is a very interesting demand here because it's, it is, it is arguing that as a federal official, Lindsey Halligan violated the Federal Records act by using a disappearing messaging platform, which makes sense for her messages. Her interaction with Anna Bauer is not privileged. This isn't like internal, you know, litigation work product privilege or some other privilege that would never see the light of day. This is her interaction with the press.

[D]

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You're put in fact American oversight goes one, goes one further and suggests that this type of interaction is an attempt to chill First Amendment speech and is also illegal. In other words, that she's warning her in a way that Halligan is being that Bauer is being warned by Halligan, which in and of itself is an improper attempt to coerce the media. In footnote six of their letter they say to Marco Rubio, given the subject matter of Halligan's communication criticizing a social media post sharing an article regarding prosecution of a critic of President Trump, Halligan's repeated accusation that Bauer doesn't report fairly may be especially appropriate for for preservation as a potential evidence of an implicit threat citing to a case called Already versus Malinari which is about forms of government coercion for First Amendment analysis. So they also say that she admitted. Here it says on page four, Halligan's admission in her final message to Bauer that the signal conversation was set to disappear suggests that she used Signal for the purposes of creating records that could not be retained. That's a flagrant violation of the. Of the Federal Records Act. And they go through all of the messages that have been that were screenshotted and saved by Anna Bauer. In her article, for instance, on page three, Halligan, as a prosecutor on the case, writes to a reporter, you're assuming exculpatory evidence without knowing what you're talking about. It's just bizarre to me. If you have any questions before you report, feel free to reach out to me. But jumping to conclusions does your credibility no good. You should read the indictment. It says she received thousands of dollars in rent. By the way. That's a lie. That's not. She doesn't even understand her own indictment. The indictment doesn't say she received thousands of dollars in rent. It says that she got a benefit from getting a mortgage, claiming to the bank that she was not going to rent it. She can't even get her indictment straight. It's three pages. I can't tell you grand jury stuff. All right, this letter is going to be. This letter is going to be the basis of the lawsuit. Now, they successfully sued about the signal app that this government did in the beginning of the administration. So I don't understand why they can't get this straight. That's trouble number one for Lindsey Halligan. Trouble number two is that the two motions to get her kicked as a interim US attorney on a violation of 28 USC 546, the. The vacancy Reform act, that she was improperly, illegally appointed. One brought by James Comey, the former FBI director, an identical one brought by Letitia James. They have now been consolidated into one hearing before a judge that's been assigned that's outside the Eastern District of Virginia. So, as I had predicted, because there's a conflict implicit in the motion between the judges of the Eastern District of Virginia and Lindsey Halligan. Because if Lindsey Halligan is kicked out as the US Attorney, it is the judges of the Eastern District, including the judges presiding over the Comey matter and the Letitia James matter, that would decide who the next U.S. attorney is temporarily, until Donald Trump finally gets around to getting one confirmed through the Senate, it puts them in conflict. So, Judge. Judge the Nakmanoff, who's the judge over the Comey case? At the urging of Comey, sent the case to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, Chief judge. That's the appellate court that sits over Virginia and South Carolina and North Carolina, and said it's got to be referred to somebody else. Judge Diaz referred it over to a judge in South Carolina, a Clinton appointee, senior status judge, Judge Cameron McGowan Curry. And now she's going to be presiding over both motions because Judge Walker consolidated Letitia James motion with the motion for Judge Curry. That was sent to Judge. For James Comey. That was sent to Judge McGowan Curry in South Carolina. So now a South Carolina Clinton appointee who used to work in the Department of Justice is going to decide whether Lindsey Halligan lives or dies, at least as a prosecutor. Uh, this is the, this is the reason you don't appoint a novice, inexperienced lawyer who's never been a federal prosecutor before to be one of the top five prosecutors in the Department of Justice overnight. You just. It's not insta prosecutor. Just add water. Send her in. But the thing that was interesting is, Lynn, Anna Bauer said it to me in a new interview that I just did that's going up on Legal AF the next few hours. She said to me, I don't even understand how Lindsey Halligan got this so wrong. She said she's. She's at least knowledgeable about the media. She'd been a media spokesperson. She'd worked on the Mar A Lago case. They trotted her out to go appear on Fox and Newsmax and friendly propaganda networks in order to talk about Mar A Lago. That's how she met Anna Bauer on the Mar A Lago case. They met at a. They met at a hotel lobby when Anna was covering the case and the hearings that were going on up in, up in Fort Pierce and all of that. So Anna Bowers, like, I don't understand how she got this wrong. She worked on the defense team. The defense team for Donald Trump was notorious for taking any little thing out of context in any of the criminal cases and using it against the prosecution. And so why should. Why are they surprised that it's happening to them now? They should know better. They wrote the playbook that the defense lawyers are using now, and they had an almost identical problem with Signal at the top of the administration that went to a trial or a hearing with the same American oversight. So we're all sort of scratching our heads here about how dumb they are in their conduct and behavior. We'll continue to follow it. All right here. You're on Legal af. Take a minute. Hit the free subscribe button. Our First Amendment right to give you honest commentary is under attack. Your First Amendment right to hear it from us is under attack, obviously by the Trump administration. Midas Touch and Legal AF attacked all day long. Keep us on the air and protect us. The size of our subscriber base is really, really important to keep us on the air. So become a free member subscriber to Legal AF right now. Come over to Legalif Substack. That's what helps us pay the bills. To be frank, it's $6.77 a month. I'll overwhelm you with amazing quality content at the intersection of law and politics. Become a card carrying member of Legal AF over on Legal AF Substack. So until my next report, I'm Michael Popak. Can't get your fill of Legal af? Me neither. That's why we formed the Legal AF substack. Every time we mention something in a hot take, whether it's a court filing or a oral argument, come over to the substack. You'll find the court filing and the oral argument there, including a daily roundup that I do called Wait for it Morning af. What else? All the other contributors from Legal AOFF are there as well. We got some new reporting, we got interviews, we got ad free versions of the podcast and hot takes where Legal AF on Substack. Come over now to free subscribe.

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