Judge rejects Mark Meadows attempt to get White House records for Georgia defense

A federal judge cast aside former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows’s bid for a cache of records from the National Archives meant to aid in his defense against criminal charges in the Georgia election case.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ruled Tuesday that a local Washington court, where Meadows initially brought the effort before it was removed to federal court, did not have authority to take action against a federal agency. Because the request was made there first, the federal court also lacks authority to act, the judge said.

“The Court cannot bypass this jurisdictional defect,” wrote Kelly, who was appointed by former President Trump, in a brief order.

A Georgia judge previously authorized Meadows to seek the records, but Kelly’s ruling indicated that court may not have had the authority to do so, either.

Meadows sought troves of records from his tenure as Trump’s chief of staff to bolster his defense against charges in Georgia he sought to subvert the state’s 2020 presidential election results to keep the former president in power despite his loss at the polls.

He faces just one count of violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, after the Georgia judge threw out the other count he faced due to a lack of detail. Meadows has pleaded not guilty.

Trump, Meadows’s former boss, is also charged in the Georgia case and has pleaded not guilty.

The Hill requested comment from an attorney for Meadows.