A California judge last month gave US Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL) the green light to proceed with suing two California cities over the cancellation of the 'America First' rally they were set to host in 2021. However, Judge Hernán Vera criticized some claims in the GOP lawmakers' lawsuit.
The Daily Beast reported that Judge Hernán Vera wrote in his ruling, "Greene and Gaetz had adequately convinced the court that the cities of Anaheim and Riverside plausibly canceled their 2021 event based on 'viewpoint discrimination.'"
However, Vera did offer some criticism, saying the far-right lawmakers' "claims that several civil-rights groups, including the NAACP and the League of Women Voters, conspired with the cities against them were full of 'numerous fatal deficiencies.'"
READ MORE: GOP reps can sue cities over canceled rallies — but judge notes 'fatal deficiencies' in their claims
Less than two weeks later, the Beast reports, "One of the most striking aspects of the lawsuit, however, is the name of one of the attorneys who has been working on it—John Eastman, the architect of the bogus legal theory that former President Donald Trump leaned on to justify his attempt to wrest the transfer of power to Joe Biden."
The news outlet notes that "Eastman, however, is not lead counsel; that role fell to Alexander Haberbush, of the Lex Rex Institute."
As of Tuesday, April 2, the former Trump official can no longer practice law after Judge Yvette Rolalnd recommended his disbarment last month.
According to the Beast, "Despite all the docket activity and the intricate constitutional questions at the center of the dispute, there is no public record of the costs of those services—and that, legal experts say, could be a problem."
The news outlet adds:
Even though the lawsuit is moving forward, it’s unclear how it’s being funded. Over the last year, there are no federal campaign finance records of any payments or debts owed to any of the lawyers on the case from any of the political committees associated with Gaetz or Greene—or any federal political committee at all.
In fact, despite Gaetz and Greene’s tireless attempts to 'own the libs'—and fundraise off those efforts—the two have been basically radio silent about this case from the beginning.
Campaign finance law experts agreed that the legal services should be accounted for in public filings.
Campaign finance law expert Caleb Burns told the news outlet, "Typically, a campaign that has retained counsel for legal work must disclose payments for that work on reports filed with the FEC. If the work has accrued and the campaign has not yet paid for it, the campaign would disclose the amount as a debt owed by the campaign."
The Daily Beast's full report is here (subscription required).
