Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast/Getty
In the past week, we’ve seen commentary from law professors and former federal prosecutors arguing that Fulton County (Georgia) District Attorney Fani Willis should not be disqualified—even though she hired as a special prosecutor Nathan Wade, a man she was allegedly dating, paid him nearly $700,000, and received vacations in return.
I disagree.
Before I get into why, a disclaimer. If these allegations are false, there is no basis to disqualify Nathan Wade or Fani Willis. There is no reason why hiring an inexperienced person for this role and paying him a lot of money should, by itself, have any impact on the Donald Trump RICO case Willis is prosecuting. We can expect a hearing on these allegations in February, and if Judge Scott F. McAfee finds them not to be credible, the case will continue as it was.