Trump-appointed judge will handle request for 'special master' instead of Reinhart

Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart, who approved the initial warrant the FBI used to search Donald Trump's Florida home, will not handle the former president's request to appoint a "special master" in the case.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, will decide the issue. Cannon was confirmed by the Senate in 2020 in a 56-21 vote, according to the Epoch Times. Cannon has already made one ruling in the case, declining to allow filings from two of Trump's attorneys for not following the rules that apply to lawyers not yet certified in the district.

Agents from the FBI's Washington Field Office raided Trump's Mar-a-Lago compound in early August seeking classified documents he may have removed from the White House. Reinhart issued the warrant despite previously recusing himself in a civil case filed by Trump against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and others over the Russia collusion scandal.

Trump, on Monday, filed a motion to appoint a "special master" to independently review the documents the FBI took from his home and to halt the federal government from continuing its own review.

Reinhart, however, could hypothetically return to the case, the Epoch Times noted. One docket entry the outlet cited says that Reinhart “is available to handle any or all proceedings in this case,” which requires the consent of both parties.