Donald Trump laid the groundwork for an attempt to overturn the 2020 election even before he lost it, knowingly promoting false claims of voter fraud and resorting to crime in his failed attempt to cling to power.
This was announced by special prosecutor Jack Smith, writes AP. The publication got acquainted with the Smith team’s new presentation on Trump’s interference in the 2020 election process. While the months-long congressional investigation and indictment itself detail Trump’s efforts to overturn the election, the filing features never-before-seen testimony from Trump’s top aides, painting a portrait of an “increasingly desperate” president who relied on deception as he lost control of the White House. to influence every stage of the electoral process.”
The documents indicate that Trump neglected the security of his own administration during the storming of the Capitol by his own supporters, and also did not respond to lawyers’ reservations about the possible consequences of his unlawful actions (“The details do not matter,” the AP quotes the ex-president’s response).
The introduction was carried out first in secret, following a Supreme Court decision that granted former presidents broad immunity for official acts committed in office; the decision narrowed the scope of the charges and eliminated the possibility of a trial before next month’s elections.
Smith’s new effort aims to convince U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan that the offenses in the indictment were committed by Trump as a private citizen, not as president, and therefore can remain part of the case as it moves forward. Chutkan allowed the redacted version to be released, although Trump’s lawyers argued that it was “unfair to declassify it so close to the election.”
While the prospects for the trial are uncertain, especially if Trump wins the presidency and the new attorney general seeks dismissal of the case, the document nonetheless serves as a roadmap for the testimony and evidence prosecutors will gather before a jury trial. Chutkan will now have to decide which of Trump’s actions constitute official conduct, for which Trump has immunity from prosecution, and which are “private crimes” for which the case can proceed.
In the submission, prosecutors describe Trump’s apparent indifference to the veracity of claims of election fraud. They also cite testimony from a White House staffer who, after the election, overheard Trump telling his wife, daughter and son-in-law aboard Marine One:
It doesn’t matter whether you win or lose the election. You still have to fight as hard as you can.
Prosecutors say that before December 5, the defendant began to think about the possibility of appealing the election results to Congress. Smith and his team call Trump’s “incendiary” speech on January 6, when he addressed his supporters who violently stormed the Capitol, as Trump’s “peak of despair.”
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.