This was a MINORITY opinion. The fact is Smith won the case.
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First, there are only 7 members on the full DC Circuit Court of Appeals. When the Twitter case to gain access to President Trump communication came to the appellate level, somehow all three of the most left-wing judges were assigned to hear the appeal.
An “en banc” review would have included the full 7 members. However, that review was made moot by the release of the information (a result of the appellate decision). The release itself was done with the use of a non-disclosure order, hiding the ruling in secrecy and keeping President Trump from knowing about it. Once the other four members of the DC CCA eventually found out about the case and the ramifications for ‘executive privilege’ their opinion lambasting their own court is released.
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What the publicity does is highlight to the world just how politically motivated all of this aforementioned action really is. Lastly, what are the odds of the random 3-judge panel to approve it. Even the DC Circuit Court itself seems to imply this was a structured outcome, which is even more infuriating to the majority within the court.
It might be more accurate to say Smith got a favorable opinion at the 3 judge panel level.