Bye-Bye, Jack Smith
AtlanticNOV 12 2024
US District Judge for the District of Columbia Tanya Chutkan has ordered Department of Justice (DOJ) special counsel Jack Smith to release more documents related to his investigation into former Pres. Donald Trump and the Jan. 6 Capitol riots.US District Judge for the District of Columbia Tanya Chutkan has ordered Dept. of Justice (DOJ) special counsel Jack Smith to release more documents related to his investigation into former Pres. Donald Trump and the Jan. 6 Capitol riots.
Among the nearly 2K heavily redacted pages released Friday are many social media posts made by Trump and his allies on Jan. 6, including one where Trump accused then-Vice Pres. Mike Pense of not having "the courage" to reject the 2020 election results.
Others included social media posts about alleged election fraud, as well as Trump's prepared Jan. 6 speech, fundraising emails from his 2020 election campaign, and a memo from former Trump lawyer John Eastman regarding a plan to reject Congress' election certification.
Judge Chutkan's ruling is based on common sense, as the public has a right to know everything about a presidential candidate's potential criminal history before an election. What makes this news so alarming, however, is the reaction from the Trump campaign. If the former president believes he did nothing wrong, then he should welcome this document release with open arms.
The reason Trump is against this is not about guilt but rather following the DOJ's policy of releasing information at least 60 days before an election. As for the details of Smith's investigation, all they've shown so far is that some people decided not to follow Trump's request that everyone protest peacefully. If Jack Smith got his way, Trump could be liable for any crime committed by someone wearing a MAGA hat.