What's going on in Bragg's office?

Now, let’s get to the down and dirty: It is one thing for a prosecutor to imagine how a competent defense lawyer could shred a case that relies heavily on a disreputable witness; it is quite another thing to watch it happen. In Monday’s testimony by Costello, who happens to be a very experienced New York defense lawyer and former prosecutor, Bragg’s prosecutors got a real-life glimpse into what is going to happen if their Stormy case against Trump goes to trial (i.e., if they charge this weak case, and it doesn’t get dismissed on legal grounds prior to trial). If Costello’s testimony has given Bragg’s office pause, that would be understandable.

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At a minimum, if I were the prosecutor, I would not want Costello to be the last testimony the grand jury heard before being asked to vote on an indictment. Presumably, unless Bragg is leaning toward dropping the case all together, he will use future grand-jury sessions — maybe next week, maybe later — to present one or more witnesses who can rebut Costello and rehabilitate Cohen, at least to the extent that the grand jurors can be reminded that his most significant testimony is buttressed by the irrefutable documents in the case (the nondisclosure agreement, the invoices Cohen gave the Trump organization, the checks paid to Cohen across 2017, the Trump bookkeeping entries, and so on).

[I’m wondering whether Bragg’s looking for a face-saving way out by now. As Andrew says, it’s impossible to tell, but no doubt they just got a big whiff of what will happen in this case proceeds to trial. And it might not get that far anyway, as Bragg’s argument on the statutes of limitation are novel, to put it kindly. A judge could well toss this out on a motion to dismiss right up front. — Ed]

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