Former DOJ espionage lawyer explains what Trump’s lawyers will exploit to try and stop or delay his trial

Speaking to MSNBC on Monday, the former Robert Mueller assistant and former national security official at the Department of Justice predicted that Donald Trump and his lawyers would do whatever they can to exploit every possible window of attack against special counsel Jack Smith and his case.

The conversation with Brandon Van Grack began by discussing part of the predictions for how Trump's first hearing will go. A protective order is being sought to help ensure the classified documents don't end up plastered on the front pages of tabloids. It means that Trump's lawyers must sign off on the protective order for the documents.

"I think it's important to underscore this, which is, this is a standard protective order," he explained. "In fact, I'd invite your listeners to compare this to the protective order that was in the case involving the national guardsman in Massachusetts that posted a bunch of classified information. Some of these passages are identical. In fact, the real only difference that I can see is that this protective order shows that some of the classified information, in this case, is also subject to the Atomic Energy Act, which is it's nuclear-related information. But otherwise, this is precisely the protective order that individuals have to sign to access classified information."

He predicted two things would unfold in the hearing Tuesday: first, the documents issue, and according to a new order from Judge Aileen Cannon, they'll be discussing the scheduling of the trial. Trump filed a motion to delay the trial indefinitely, the DOJ has opposed that request.

"What I think we're going to see the Department of Justice do is show we've provided now almost all the unclassified discovery in this case," Van Grack continued. "In fact, we also gave them a guide on how to review that information and what's most important. And they're going to say that we actually are ready to produce almost all of the classified documents. In fact, they're probably going to say tomorrow, it's sitting in the courthouse. All you have to do is sign this memorandum of understanding, and you have this classified information."

He thinks this will be the DOJ's trump card for encouraging the trial to move forward quickly because they have everything ready, and they'll likely say that there is no reason for delay because it's prepared.

As for Trump's lawyers, Van Grack thinks Trump's team will have to figure out how to call for more delays.

"What the government said is, we can't provide classified information until this protective order is signed, and the defendant's counsel said we object, but they didn't tell us what their objections were," he explained. "And they wouldn't talk to us over the weekend. And so we're filing this without any understanding of what their objections are."

So, they're asking for a delay without any real legal argument as to why.

"I suspect one of the reasons for the delay is a point you just raised, which is one of the things that this protective order has," he went on. "And again, this is a standard protective order, is the defense counsel cannot automatically share classified information with the defendants. And that is standard. That's not to say that most declassified information can't be shared. But there will be some classified information the government is saying which will not be shared with the defendants, and that provision alone is likely something that defendants object to."

MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace asked what to expect, and Van Grack said that the first thing will be the debate over the protective order and then a discussion about the scheduling issue.

"I want to see whether Judge Cannon is actually going to take these hearings and these filings on herself, which will expedite the process, versus sending them to a magistrate judge, which can then be appealed to Judge Cannon, which would be a source for delay," he warned. "S, I think that's another piece. And finally, I'm going to be curious to see how the Department of Justice articulates that limitation that you referenced in terms of the defendants not being able to necessarily access all the classified information" under that protective order.

See the full conversation with Van Grack in the video below or at the link here.