Transcript

PISSED OFF Judge DROPS THE HAMMER on Trump DOJ & Halligan

From MeidasTouch · Episode page · Watch on YouTube

· 17 min · 2,792 words · 20 timestamped sections

This is the full, timestamped transcript of "PISSED OFF Judge DROPS THE HAMMER on Trump DOJ & Halligan", an episode of MeidasTouch published January 20, 2026 (17 min, about 2,792 words). It mentions 11 people, works and ideas, including Lindsay Halligan, David J. Novak, Adam Curry, Michael Popach, Department of Justice.

What this episode is about

A federal judge in the Eastern District of Virginia questions the legality of Lindseay Hallan’s appointment and the conduct of her bosses, while ordering vacancy decisions and potential disciplinary referrals affecting multiple U.S. attorneys and officials. The decision scrutinizes official titles, appointment validity, and the timing of related judicial actions.

Key takeaways

  • Judge Novak torpedoes the title game, declaring the US Attorney label invalid and discipline on the table.
  • A procedural maze: vacancy rulings, circuit orders, and a media-friendly firestorm collide in real time.
  • The DOJ’s insult-slinging response shows a culture clash between executive bravado and courtroom decorum.
  • Ambiguity about who can appoint or appoint-a-deputize matters as much as the law itself.
  • This saga reframes ‘authority’: titles fade, but jurisdiction and discipline pressure remain potent.

Who speaks in this episode?

What is discussed, and when

  1. – 3:00: David J. Novak, Adam Curry, Lindsay Halligan, Michael Popach
  2. – 6:00: Adam Curry, Department of Justice, Eric Cybert
  3. – 9:00: Adam Curry, Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, Department of Justice, Popac Firm
  4. – 12:00: Adam Curry, David J. Novak, Popac Firm
  5. – 15:00: Adam Curry, Department of Justice, David J. Novak, Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals
  6. – 16:55: Legal AF, Lindsay Halligan, Intersection, Morning AF

Notable quotes from "PISSED OFF Judge DROPS THE HAMMER on Trump DOJ & Halligan"

  • Got a scorching new order. I mean it's so I mean I need us best as gloves to hold it from Judge Novak in the Eastern District of Virginia. Hot off the presses. Wait till I read…
    about David J. Novak · at
  • And now we've got it. You ready? Here we go. I'm Michael Popach. You're on the Midas Touch Network and Legal AF. Take a minute, hit the free subscribe button here. Hit that subscribe button over on Legal AF as well. Let's start from the.
    about Michael Popach · at
  • Title of as being illegally appointed by Judge Curry in a decision back on November the 24th. Why is she signing indictments? Why is she signing pleadings? Why is she running…
    about Lindsay Halligan · at
  • Action. That's how he starts off the order because the Department of Justice said, How dare you with like tmerity, how dare you, judge, to be the inquisitor.
    about Department of Justice · at
  • By it because it was sent by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals directly to Judge Curry to avoid a conflict of interest in the Eastern District of Virginia. Judge Curry…
    about Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals · at
  • Wrongful death cases. So if you or someone you know have a case like this, the consultation with Popox Firm is free. Give them a call. See if you have a case. It's the popfirm.com.
    about Popac Firm · at
  • Judge sounding the alarm to the American people. Glad you're here on the Midas Touch Network and Legal AF. Catch me on my podcast, my solo podcast. It's called Intersection…
    about Intersection · at

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

  • Lindsay Halligan — Person · Central referenced subject (disputed U.S. Attorney appointee) · 3 mentions · first at
    The episode centers on whether Halligan was lawfully appointed and whether she improperly continued using the 'U.S. Attorney' title and signing filings, prompting potential discipline threats from Judge Novak.
  • David J. Novak — Person · Referenced judge / author of the key order · 9 mentions · first at
    He issues the “scorching” memorandum order striking the 'U.S. Attorney' title from filings, barring Halligan from using it in his court, and warning of disciplinary proceedings for Halligan and any signatories (including Bondi and Blanch).
  • Adam Curry — Person · Referenced judge / prior ruling on appointment validity · 16 mentions · first at
    Her earlier order (dated in the transcript as Nov. 24) is treated by Judge Novak as binding district-wide on the issue of Halligan’s appointment validity; DOJ is criticized for ignoring it.
    You've got Judge Novak in his 16, sorry, 18page decision saying, No, the vacancy was back on November 24th when Judge Curry was assigned the responsibility for deciding whether…
  • Michael Popach — Person · Host / main speaker · 1 mention · first at
    He narrates and analyzes the court orders, reads key passages from Judge Novak’s decision, and frames the dispute involving Halligan, Judge Curry, and DOJ leadership.
  • Eric Cybert — Person · Referenced prior officeholder (context for vacancy/acting limits) · 1 mention · first at
    Cited as the prior acting/interim occupant of the U.S. Attorney seat; used to explain statutory limits on successive acting appointments and why Halligan’s appointment is argued to be invalid.
    Because she because there's only four ways to fill a vacancy after the vacancy has been filled once before because we had Eric Cybert in that seat until he quit or was fired…

Companies & orgs

Media & podcasts

  • Legal AF — Media · 4 mentions · first at
    Midas Touch Network and Legal AF. Take a minute, hit the free subscribe button here. Hit that subscribe button over on Legal AF as well. Let's start from the back and then I'll…
  • Intersection — Media · 1 mention · first at
  • Morning AF — Media · 1 mention · first at
    Time we mention something in a hot take, whether it's a court filing or a oral argument. Come over to the Substack.

Full transcript with timestamps

US attorney titles are being stripped off. Possible referrals for disciplinary proceedings made by a federal judge concerning not only Lindseay Hallan but her bosses Todd Blanch and Pam Bondi. We got a scorching new order. I mean it's so I mean I need us best as gloves to hold it from Judge Novak in the Eastern District of Virginia. Hot off the presses. Wait till I read it to you. And how he goes after Lindseay Hallan, but also Pam Bondi and also Todd Blanch and throws his appropriate weight around as an article three lifetime appointed judge, a Trump appointed judge at that.

We got a lot of moving parts here that all just happened in the last few hours in the Eastern District of Virginia. We have the chief judge saying there's a vacancy created and Lindseay Haligan is no longer the uh the US attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia, but declaring that today, January 20th, is the date for that. At the same time, you've got Judge Novak in his 16, sorry, 18page decision saying, "No, the vacancy was back on November 24th when Judge Curry was assigned the responsibility for deciding whether Lindseay Haligan was properly appointed or not by the Chief Judge of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals."

And now we've got it. You ready? Here we go. I'm Michael Popach. You're on the Midas Touch Network and Legal AF. Take a minute, hit the free subscribe button here. Hit that subscribe button over on Legal AF as well. Let's start from the back and then I'll read you all the highlights. Here's the conclusion by Judge Novak. How'd we get here? Let me just give you the the uh the rundown and the cast of characters. on January 6th, and I don't think that date was chosen uh lightly, Judge Novak on his own initiative in a case not related to uh former FBI Director Comey or Leticia James uh entered what we referred to as an order to show cause while Lindseay Hallan is still using the US attorney title despite being stripped of that title of as being illegally appointed by Judge Curry in a decision back on November the 24th. Why is she signing indictments? Why is she signing pleadings? Why is she running the

office? Why is she appearing before Judge Novak? And why exp and have her hagan explain herself, sign her own pleading, and explain herself as to why she shouldn't be referred for discipline to have her license taken away for impersonating, violating orders, and the rest. A week later, the Department of Justice blasted Judge Novak. blasted Judge Novak so inappropriately in calling him an inquisitor, out of control, has no right to challenge her title and so on that here's how the judge put it in his order just to kind of set the stage. Miss Halligan's response, which is on the six, joined by Bondi and Blanch, in which she was joined by both the attorney general and the deputy attorney general, page two of the judge's order today, contains a level of vitrial more appropriate for a cable news talk show, which is where Lindseay Haligan came from, and falls far beneath the level of advoc advocacy

expected from litigants in this court, particularly the Department of Justice. The court will not engage in a similar tit fortat and will instead analyze the few points that Miss Halligan offers to justify her continued identification of her position as the US attorney before this court. Ultimately, the court concludes that Miss Hallagan's continued identification of herself as the US attorney for this district ignores a binding court order and may not continue. Otherwise, Miss Halligan and anyone who joins her on a pleading containing the improper moniker subjects themselves to potential disciplinary action. That's how he starts off the order because the Department of Justice said, "How dare you with like tmerity, how dare you, judge, to be the inquisitor.

You don't have the inherent authority." And then they had this big heart of their of their filing which said, "We don't agree with Judge Curry, even though she was assigned the task of determining whether Lindseay Alligan was illegally appointed or not as a judge. We don't agree with the person in the black robe. We have our own opinion about what her order means. Her order on November 24th quite clearly said that not only has she declared that that Lindseay Hagan was illegally appointed because she because there's only four ways to fill a vacancy after the vacancy has been filled once before because we had Eric Cybert in that seat until he quit or was fired because he wouldn't go after James Comey or Leticia James. He was the 120day uh acting interim allowed by the statute. You don't get another after that. You only can fill it as Judge Curry outlined if you use the first assistant, right? The deputy to

the to the attorney to the uh US attorney. Well, they didn't want to use that because that's not Lindsay Hall. Or they could have pulled somebody who had been confirmed by the Senate but for a different role like, you know, the Department of Agriculture and stick that person in there for a period of time. They didn't want to do that. or the judges of the district pick and and fill the vacancy. And and that's it. And Judge Curry said, "There's a vacancy that only the Eastern District of Virginia judges can fill." Now, that was November 24th. We waited around for the Eastern District of Virginia judges to rule. Like, what are they waiting for?

And that allowed the Trump administration to argue, "We don't agree with her order. We think it only applies about Leticia James and and James Comey, and nobody else can call it out." And judge after judge. had six judges in the Eastern District from magistrate judges to uh article 3 judges all saying the same thing. How is Lindseay Hallan running around with the moniker of US attorney when she's not and violating Judge Curry's order? That's what Novak wanted to know. Here's now let me read to you from the key the the key sections here starting with the the conclusion in the back. and he cuts her some slack for being an inexperienced prosecutor. By way, uh, by the way, he says the following on page 18.

The court recognizes that Miss Halligan lacks the prosecutorial experience that has long been the norm for these those nominated to the position. Consequently, and in light of her inexperience, the court grants Miss Alligan the benefit of the doubt and refrains from referring her for further investigation and disciplinary action regarding the misrepresentations to this court. However, this memorandum order provides notice that should Miss Halligan persist in ignoring Judge Curry's orders or any other matter, the court will initiate discip disciplinary proceedings against Miss Hallagan and any other signatory to an offending pleading pursuant to federal rule of disciplinary enforcement five. That's you, Bondi. That's you, Todd Blanch. Here's what else the judge concludes.

The Eastern District of Virginia has long enjoyed the service of experienced prosecutors with unquestioned integrity from both political parties for the US attorney position. Despite coming from different political backgrounds and ideologies, they put the interests of the citizens of the district before their own personal ambitions as true public servants do. Unfortunately, it appears that this ethos has come to an end. Yeah, we're not nominating ethical people anymore, everybody. The Trump administration is out of business for that. A district judge acting at the discretion or sorry the direction of the chief judge of the fourth circuit has ruled on behalf of the district judges of this district that Miss Halligan was invalidly appointed at the United States Attorney. See that's the point that that the judge calls out. The Department of Justice completely ignores that Chief Judge Diaz referred one issue to Judge

Curry to decide for the entirety of the district whether Lindseay Holligan was illegally unconstitutionally appointed. That was her remitt. That was her scope. And they ignored that. They don't even mention the referral to Judge Curry. They just said, "Judge, judge, judge Curry's just some judge. You don't have to, you're not bound by it." He is bound by it because it was sent by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals directly to Judge Curry to avoid a conflict of interest in the Eastern District of Virginia. Judge Curry normally sits in South Carolina, but they didn't want that friction, that conflict if the Eastern District judges have to fill the job, which they are in the process of doing as of today. Hey everybody, Ben Meelis here from the Midas Touch Network. I wanted to let you know about my podcast partner, Michael Popox's new law firm. It's called the Popac Firm.

Michael Popox pursuing his dream of starting his own law firm really based on the popular demand by all the mightest mighty and legal Aefers who were approaching Michael Popac with their cases and saying can you help us and at that time Popac was not able to. So he went out on his own. He started the Pope firm where he is now handling catastrophic injury cases like car accident cases, trucking cases, malpractice cases, big negligence cases, wrongful death cases. So if you or someone you know have a case like this, the consultation with Popox Firm is free. Give them a call. See if you have a case. It's the popfirm.com.

the popfirm.com or you can call 877 pop af P AF. So 1877 pop af. Give Michael Popac a call and I'm really proud of you Popac. Thanks for all the hard work you're putting in. Here's what he decides to do. Not only is he stripping her of her title, but he's stripping it off of all documents. He said, "For all of these reasons, the court hereby strikes the words US attorney from the signature block on the indictment, which is um the indictment in this particular case, as well as all other government filings in this case.

The government further bars Miss Heligan from representing herself as the US attorney in any pleading or otherwise before this court until such time as she is lawfully confirmed by the Senate. Um, and the bar shall be effective as of tomorrow. For the avoidance of doubt, he says in footnote 5, you want to call yourself special attorney. I don't know what that means, but go ahead. That's that's doubt in footnote five. Now, let me read you from other aspects of the order. particularly, let me go to page um kind of the one of the major hooks of his decision-making, what we call the radio, is about chief judge Diaz and the referral to Judge Curry. He said on page seven or on page six, in levying the argument, Miss Halligan fails to acknowledge the unique context of Judge Curry's order. As set forth on October 21, Chief Judge Diaz issued an order designating and assigning Judge Curry to hear and determine pending and future

motions concerning the appointment qualifications or disqualifications of the United States Attorney or the office in in Comey matter and all other cases involving similar challenges. Once and for all, it's Judge Curry. Judge Novak says on page seven, "Critically, Chief Judge Diaz assigned Judge Curry to resolve not a particular motion, but a specific issue, the validity of Miss Halligan's appointment." With words that could not be clear, Chief Judge Diaz directed Judge Curry to resolve any and all motions, including other similar challenges. That's done. As such, Judge Novak determines Judge Curry was appointed with the express mandate to speak for all judges in this district on the issue of Miss Halligan's appointment. Then he cites to the Abbrego Garcia case. See, Donald Trump sometimes makes precedent that bites him in the ass. So on page eight, calling out the Department of Justice

and the Trump administration again, page eight, rather stunningly, Miss Halligan fails to even mention Judge Diaz's order, let alone discuss the impact here. In short, she's not only ignored Judge Curry's ruling, she has turned a blind eye to an order from the Chief Judge of the Fourth Circuit. The court finds it inconceivable that the Department of Justice, which holds a duty to faithfully execute the laws of the United States, even those in which it may disagree, would repeatedly ignore orders while simultaneously prosecuting citizens for breaking the law. In the wise words of Jay Harvey Wilkinson of the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, his bosses, "Yet we yet cling to the hope that it is not naive to believe our good brethren in the executive branch perceive the rule of law as vital to the American ethos, citing the Abrago Garcia case against the Trump administration that went up to

the United States Supreme Court, a firm 90. And that is from April of 2025. So the fact that he's even he's citing a major case against the Trump administration and then he reminds the Department of Justice in Hakin that you may not agree with Judge Curry but she is the chief she is the judge assigned to the matter. You haven't sought a stay at the fourth circuit court of appeals and therefore her order stands. You stand down as US attorney. Here's how Judge Novak puts it. At the end of the day, Miss Halligan's response, page 16, asserts that she is free to act in an unlawful capacity because she disagrees that she does so unlawfully. But that's not how our legal system works. By having continued to exercise a position to which she was unconstitutionally appointed, including the signing of the indictment as the United States Attorney, she has exercised powers she does not lawfully possess.

Uh, this ain't over, folks. As I said before Judge Novak issued his order and maybe he knew that it was coming out. We got a new order from the chief judge of this particular court, Eastern District of Virginia in a very strange turn of affairs. She determined she ignored Judge Curry's order completely and all her order did was declare that there was a vacancy as of the January the 20th today. and therefore she's advertising for more uh for um people to come in and apply for the job, which was a headscratcher for me. Uh this is before Novak's order just came out. And I said, "What are you talking about?" Judge Curry ruled on on November 24th for the whole district. Novak is taking that position, but the chief judge, his own chief judge, is taking a different position about the analysis, which which creates sort of a little bit of a loophole. and you know the Trump administration is going to try to drive

a truck through it. Now, I'm not sure what's going to happen when you read these two things together, but certainly an odd state of affairs, but Novak is clear, decisive, no ambiguity. We've got an illegally appointed Lindseay Halligan. I'm going to cut you a break because you're inexperienced, but I think the days of having experienced, ethical prosecutors who do the public service are over with this Trump administration. And I'm also questioning whether whether they will ever comply with a rule of law in the executive branch. That's a Trumpapp appointed judge sounding the alarm to the American people. Glad you're here on the Midas Touch Network and Legal AF. Catch me on my podcast, my solo podcast. It's called Intersection Tuesday nights here on the Midas Touch Network. 8:00 PM Eastern time. Still doing of course Legal AF with Ben Myellis and Carrie Freeman. and still curating everything as the

executive producer on the Legal AF YouTube channel. So until my next report, this is Michael. Can't get your fill of legal AF? Me neither. That's why we formed the Legal AF Substack. Every time we mention something in a hot take, whether it's a court filing or a oral argument. Come over to the Substack. You'll find the court filing and the oral argument there, including a daily roundup that I do called, wait for it, Morning AF. What else? All the other contributors from Legal AF are there as well. We got some new reporting. We got interviews. We got ad free versions of the podcast and hot takes. Where? Legal AF on Substack. Come over now to free subscribe.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "PISSED OFF Judge DROPS THE HAMMER on Trump DOJ & Halligan"?

Michael Popach (Host), Ben Meelis (Host), Lindseay Halligan (Guest), Todd Blanch (Guest), Pam Bondi (Guest), Judge Novak (Guest), Judge Curry (Guest), Chief Judge Diaz (Guest).

What is "PISSED OFF Judge DROPS THE HAMMER on Trump DOJ & Halligan" about?

A federal judge in the Eastern District of Virginia questions the legality of Lindseay Hallan’s appointment and the conduct of her bosses, while ordering vacancy decisions and potential disciplinary referrals affecting multiple U.S. attorneys and officials. The decision scrutinizes official titles, appointment validity, and the timing of related judicial actions.

What is mentioned in this MeidasTouch episode?

11 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Lindsay Halligan, David J. Novak, Adam Curry, Michael Popach, Department of Justice, Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "PISSED OFF Judge DROPS THE HAMMER on Trump DOJ & Halligan"?

The episode runs 17 min; the transcript is about 2,792 words in 20 timestamped sections.

More from MeidasTouch

About this transcript: the episode's spoken words as captioned on YouTube, split into timestamped sections. Reclip.Me locates every person, work and idea in the text, keeps the time it is first named, and quotes the words around it verbatim. Last updated October 29, 2026.