Donald Trump's classified documents case set amid GOP presidential primaries: 4 takeaways

Donald Trump's litigation calendar just got a little more crowded − and his political calendar a little more complicated − after a federal judge on scheduled his trial in the classified documents case to begin May 20.

"The Court finds that the interests of justice served by this continuance outweigh the best interest of the public and Defendants in a speedy trial," U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon wrote Friday.

The trial could be delayed again, depending on disputes over issues such as what evidence will be allowed at trial. Trump's lawyers have said they will be making novel legal arguments that judges have not decided before.

Here are four takeaways about what the decision means for Trump's schedule:

Documents trial set after primaries but in heat of presidential campaign

Cannon's tentative schedule − she put the caveat "at this juncture" in her order − puts the national security case in the middle of the presidential primaries.

Trump continues to lead polls for the Republican nomination despite his legal cases. While the nomination should be decided by May 20, states that have primaries after that date include Kentucky, Oregon, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico and South Dakota. A two-month trial would run into the GOP convention in Milwaukee in mid-July.

Trump raises campaign contributions and rallies his supporters in part based on fighting criminal cases that he contends are politically motivated to prevent him from opposing President Joe Biden.

But debates about evidence and the trial itself could hurt his standing among voters. Even if Trump becomes the nominee, revelations at the trial could hurt his standing in the general election.

Trump's lawyers have argued it isn't possible for him to get a fair trial during the campaign. They've also argued the campaign will keep him and hs personal valet, co-defendant Walt Nauta, too busy to prepare for a trial.

“It is intellectually dishonest to say this case is like any other case,” Trump lawyer Todd Blanche said Wednesday. “It is not.”

But government lawyers said plenty of criminal defendants have busy schedules.

“He should be treated like everyone else,” assistant special counsel David Harbach said Wednesday.

More: Cases threaten to engulf Trump Another federal indictment threatens to engulf Donald Trump and his presidential campaign

Trump's campaign welcomes schedule as 'major setback' for government

Trump's campaign welcomed the trial schedule, despite it falling within the primary season, as an opportunity to fight the charges.

“Today’s order by Judge Cannon is a major setback to the DOJ’s crusade to deny President Trump a fair legal process," the campaign statement said. "The extensive schedule allows President Trump and his legal team to continue fighting this empty hoax."

Judge Aileen Cannon splits difference between prosecution, defense

Cannon's oversight of the case has been scrutinized because she is a Trump appointee who ruled favorably toward him during the investigation of the documents at Mar-a-Lago.

FBI agents seized hundreds of classified records at Mar-a-Lago in their search in August 2022, more than a year and a half after Trump left the White House. Trump was indicted on 37 counts, including willful retention of national defense information under the Espionage Act, conspiracy to obstruct justice and concealing documents. Trump's personal valet, Walt Nauta, also was charged in the case and has pleaded not guilty.

Cannon ordered a special master to review the documents for possible restrictions under attorney-client or executive privilege before federal investigators could use them. But the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned her order, ruling that Cannon couldn't allow the subject of a search warrant to block government investigations after the execution of the warrant.

In the debate Wednesday over the timing of the trial, prosecutors said a December start would give Trump and his lawyers time to review the evidence. But Trump's lawyers argued the case should be postponed until after the 2024 election because he couldn't get a fair trial while campaigning for the White House.

“We need to set a timetable,” Cannon said Wednesday. “Some deadlines can be established now.”

She ruled Friday that a December start proposed by prosecutors would be too soon for Trump and his lawyers to review "exceedingly voluminous" evidence, including 340 classified documents totaling 1,545 pages in the case.

Documents case scheduled after New York civil and criminal cases

Trump already faces a handful of other trials and pending investigations by federal and Georgia prosecutors:

◾ A New York civil trial against Trump’s namesake company is scheduled in October.

◾ E. Jean Carroll, who won a $5 million defamation judgment against Trump in May, has a second trial for statements against her made while he was president. The trial is scheduled to start on Jan. 15, the date of the Iowa presidential caucuses.

◾ A New York criminal trial looms in March on charges Trump falsified business records to pay a woman to remain silent before the 2020 election about her claim that she had sex with him.

In addition, Smith and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in Georgia are investigating Trump for possible election fraud in 2020. Trump announced Tuesday that Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith named him a target in the federal investigation.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Donald Trump's legal and political calendars collide: 4 takeaways