Special counsel Jack Smith believed that US President-elect Donald Trump could have been convicted for attempting to overturn the 2020 election if he hadn’t been re-elected. In a report released Tuesday, he details investigation and defends his decision to file charges.
Smith argued Trump used “knowingly false claims of election fraud” to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power. The report states, “The throughline of all of Mr. Trump’s criminal efforts was deceit – knowingly false claims of election fraud – and the evidence shows that Mr. Trump used these lies as a weapon to defeat a federal government function foundational to the United States’ democratic process.”
Trump’s re-election prevented the prosecution from proceeding due to Department of Justice policy, the report claimed. “The Department’s view that the Constitution prohibits the continued indictment and prosecution of a President is categorical and does not turn on the gravity of the crimes charged, the strength of the Government’s proof, or the merits of the prosecution, which the Office stands fully behind. Indeed, but for Mr. Trump’s election and imminent return to the Presidency, the Office assessed that the admissible evidence was sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction at trial,” it stated.
Trump faced allegations of conspiring to defraud the United States and obstructing an official proceeding during the Congressional certification of President Joe Biden’s victory, which was disrupted by Trump supporters on January 6, 2021.
The report also addressed challenges faced during the investigation, including Trump’s use of executive privilege and social media to influence witnesses. Smith wrote, “Mr. Trump’s resort to intimidation and harassment during the investigation was not new, as demonstrated by his actions during the charged conspiracies.” He further added that his team “stood up for the rule of law” as they investigated Trump.
Following the report’s late-night publication, Trump responded on Truth Social, criticising Smith as “deranged”. He said, “Deranged Jack Smith was unable to successfully prosecute the Political Opponent of his “boss,” Crooked Joe Biden, so he ends up writing yet another “Report” based on information that the Unselect Committee of Political Hacks and Thugs ILLEGALLY DESTROYED AND DELETED, because it showed how totally innocent I was, and how completely guilty Nancy Pelosi, and others, were. Jack is a lamebrain prosecutor who was unable to get his case tried before the Election, which I won in a landslide. THE VOTERS HAVE SPOKEN!!!”
“To show you how desperate Deranged Jack Smith is, he released his Fake findings at 1:00 A.M. in the morning,” Trump wrote in a subsequent post.
The report was released just days before Trump’s return to office on January 20. A separate volume concerning classified documents at Mar-a-Lago remains sealed.
This comes after announced departure from his role at the US Department of Justice as special counsel, according to a court filing released on Saturday. Smith had been tasked with investigating Donald Trump’s purported attempts to challenge the 2020 election outcome.
During his tenure, Smith had filed charges against Trump, including allegations of conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction of an official proceeding. However, following Trump’s victory in the November presidential election, Smith withdrew all cases against him.
