Judge Tracie Porter in Cook County, Illinois, was apparently looking for her moment in the spotlight. She got it when she removed Donald Trump from the Illinois primary ballot on Wednesday evening.

Judge Porter then promptly stayed her own order until March 1st, so that Team Trump can appeal. But the Illinois state primary is on March 19th. The Supreme Court has already heard the case that Colorado presented regarding the 14th Amendment’s “insurrection” ban, and that forthcoming ruling will apply to Illinois. So, what was the point of this?

The judge wanted ATTENTION. And she’s getting it.

Judge Tracie Porter in Cook County, Ill., issued her lengthy ruling Wednesday, ordering the state election board to remove the former president from Illinois’s March 19 primary ballot.

The decision is paused until March 1 to allow Trump’s legal team to appeal the decision in Illinois state courts, per the ruling shared with The Hill. He has already appealed similar ballot challenges in Colorado and Maine.

Porter pointed to the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling, calling its rationale “compelling.”

“This Court shares the Colorado Supreme Court’s sentiments that did not reach its conclusions lightly,” she wrote in her ruling. “This Court also realizes the magnitude of this decision and it impact on the upcoming primary Illinois elections.”

Porter’s decision is a reversal from the Illinois State Board of Elections, which unanimously voted late last month that Trump could remain on the state’s primary ballot. The eight-member state board — which includes four Republicans and four Democrats — said at the time it did not have the jurisdiction to decide on the matter.

The challenge in Illinois was filed by national nonprofit Free Speech For People, which has filed numerous ballot challenges in several states, including Minnesota, Michigan, Massachusetts and Oregon.

Not only is this ruling supremely stupid because the Colorado case is already under consideration by the Supreme Court, but the election that Judge Porter is supposedly “removing” Donald Trump is happening RIGHT NOW. Early voting is already underway for the Illinois primary election, which means the ballots are already printed and being used. So, what is the point of all of this, besides getting the judge some media love? Lawfare. The more cases Team Trump has to work, the more money he is spending on that legal team. And what better thing to waste money on than a case that is already being decided at the Supreme Court?

The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to make a decision on the matter soon. If the U.S. Supreme Court rules in Mr. Trump’s favor, most of the efforts to keep him off the ballot – in Illinois, Colorado, Maine, and elsewhere – would likely be tossed out.

CBS 2 Legal Analyst Irv Miller pointed out the highest court has two cases regarding the former president, and said as a result, the Cook County court decision is “absolutely meaningless.”

“[The U.S. Supreme Court has] the two big cases right now – on the Colorado case throwing him off the ballot because of the Fourteenth Amendment, and the question of whether or not he has presidential immunity,” Miller said.

The U.S. Supreme Court decided it will hear arguments on April 22 as to whether Mr. Trump should be granted immunity from prosecution. A federal grand jury indicted Mr. Trump for attempting to overturn the 2020 election, and the U.S. Appeals Court rejected the immunity claim earlier this month.

With the immunity case now also before the Supreme Court, and an indefinite hold on any court proceedings until there is a final ruling, Trump may have won the legal waiting game regarding Jack Smith’s January 6th prosecution.

#SCOTUS ruling is a gift to Trump, even if the Justices ultimately rule against him on immunity. A decision in late June makes a DC trial on 1/6 issues nearly impossible. 3/25 NYC trial in the Stormy case will be the only Trump criminal trial before Election Day.

— Jeffrey Toobin (@JeffreyToobin) February 28, 2024

And no one actually cares about the Alvin Bragg case regarding Stormy Daniels. Jeffrey Toobin is also predicting that Trump will prevail against Colorado – and now Illinois – in the 14th Amendment cases attempting to remove Trump from the ballot. Someone had better make sure Toobin has plenty of lotion on hand when that ruling comes down. *cough*

Judge Tracie Porter won’t face any consequences for wasting the court’s time on an issue already being litigated far above her pay grade. She’s looking to be lauded as “stunning” and “brave” for “daring” to toss Donald Trump off the ballot in Illinois. So what if the entire exercise is futile and dumb? She got her name in the news, didn’t she? Everyone remember Judge Tracie Porter’s name. I have a feeling she may make a name for herself with another stupid ruling again someday.

Featured image via succo on Pixabay, cropped, Pixabay license