According to fresh reports this morning, Jack Smith, the Department of Justice’s Special Counsel investigating the Trump document issue at Mar-a-Lago, is almost ready to wrap up his inquiry.
The records discovered during an FBI raid at Mar-a-Lago last summer are what sparked the inquiry, which has lasted over a year. The Department of Justice collected files during the search that they believed had been wrongfully taken from the White House and improperly declassified. Republicans reacted negatively to the raid because they believed the DOJ and FBI were continuing to harass a future Republican presidential candidate.
However, Special Counsel Smith has increased the pressure in recent weeks, making Trump’s staff members feel as if they ought to be “bracing to face an indictment.”
“People in the former president’s circle said that some of Trump’s closest associates are preparing for his indictment and also are expecting to be in a position to fundraise from a prosecution, as clashes between members of the Trump attorneys have resulted to the leaving of a key attorney.”
“From senior political advisers to cleaners and maintenance personnel, attorneys working for Smith have just finished interviewing virtually every employee at Trump’s Florida residence, the individuals say. Inquiries that seemed to zero in on particular elements Smith’s team would need to present to prove a crime, such as those that speak to Trump’s intentions and questions intended to undermine potential defenses Trump might have raised were pressed on witnesses by the prosecution, some during several rounds of testimony,” they claimed.
In recent weeks, “the special counsel team conducted an abundance of grand jury interviews which seemed to be tying up loose ends,” the sources said.
There is now no clear indication of whether Smith would personally prosecute Donald Trump or only suggest charges to Merrick Garland’s DOJ. However, it is not the only inquiry Smith is doing into Trump, and there are other inquiries that may result in more charges.
Trump has previously been charged with 34 felony charges of manipulating business documents by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, which took a lot of complicated yoga positions to make that stretch. The DOJ is conducting many investigations, and a prosecutor in Fulton County, Georgia, is attempting to prosecute Trump for attempting to rig the election.
Trump has already made history as the first former president in American history to be charged with a crime. But given his tactics to avoid inquiries, subpoenas, and potential court appearances while simultaneously attempting to win the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, that territory may be risky.
The DOJ is also investigating two more incidents involving secret papers. Additionally, records were discovered in the residences of both Mike Pence and Joe Biden, leading to the appointment of a Special Counsel in Biden’s case. In previous letters to legislators, Trump’s attorneys have noted that “deficient document storage and handling procedures are not limited to any person, leadership, or political group.”
Author: Blake Ambrose