DOJ moving to wind down Trump criminal cases before he takes office
NBC7 days
US Justice Department Requests Pause on Trump Case
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Above: Special counsel Jack Smith speaks to members of the media at the US Dept. of Justice building in Washington, DC, on Aug. 1, 2023. Image copyright: SAUL LOEB/Contributor/AFP via Getty Images
The Facts
US federal Judge Tanya S. Chutkan granted US Dept. of Justice (DOJ) special counsel Jack Smith’s request to pause the deadlines in his 2020 election interference case against Pres.-elect Donald Trump.
This comes two days after DOJ sources told NBC News that they were working to wind down their two cases against Trump — the other being the classified documents case.
The Spin
Democratic narrative
Jack Smith should have been able to prosecute this case months ago, and despite the urgency to address Trump's 2020 election interference, he faced unnecessary obstacles from both the Trump campaign and the courts. While Judge Chutkan approved his filing, these delays — which were based on ironic claims that Smith was interfering in an election — ultimately undermined the DOJ's pursuit of justice.
Republican narrative
Jack Smith's actions resulted in interfering with public perceptions in the election, which is why even anti-Trump news outlets were calling him out on it. Just before the election, Smith filed a 165-page long shot filing aimed at smearing Trump — but it didn't work and the country voted for Trump nonetheless. Smith, as well as all the state prosecutors who attacked Trump, are finally ending their bad faith witch hunts.
