Donald Trump has weathered everything from impeachment to an assassin’s bullet. Now he’s got another hurdle to jump over.
Because he got slapped with a surprise in court that could change the 2024 race.
In yet another move to target former President Trump, Special Counsel Jack Smith filed a fresh indictment on Tuesday. This time, the charges focus on Trump’s alleged efforts to challenge the outcome of the 2020 election.
The timing and nature of these charges suggest an attempt to sidestep a recent Supreme Court ruling that granted former presidents immunity for their official actions — a ruling that clearly favored Trump.
Smith’s latest maneuver doesn’t stray far from the previous indictment but instead refines the accusations in light of the Supreme Court’s decision. The allegations have been reframed, notably omitting claims involving DOJ and other government officials.
The focus now zeroes in on Trump’s role as a candidate and his discussions with then-Vice President Mike Pence, who held the ceremonial position of Senate president.
A significant alteration in this indictment is the removal of a section that accused Trump of attempting to use the Justice Department to overturn his 2020 defeat.
This follows the Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision affirming Trump’s immunity for actions taken while in office — a clear victory for Trump in the ongoing legal battles.
Despite these adjustments, the indictment still carries the weighty charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.
Trump, maintaining his innocence, has pleaded not guilty to these politically charged accusations.
Smith’s allegations claim that Trump was involved in efforts to assemble alternate slates of electors in key states won by Biden and pressured Pence to reject the certified electoral votes.
However, the revised indictment notably distances itself from the more controversial claims related to Trump’s alleged attempts to coerce DOJ officials.
This streamlined case was hastily filed just days before a deadline for Smith’s office to update the judge on how they intended to proceed following the Supreme Court’s ruling.
It’s clear that Smith is racing against the clock, with a status hearing set for next week before U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan.
Interestingly, the updated indictment was issued by a grand jury that had not been privy to the original evidence. This new jury only reviewed the freshly introduced allegations, raising questions about the legitimacy and intent behind this latest legal action.
Gone are the allegations against Jeffrey Clark, a former top official in Trump’s DOJ, who had proposed sending a letter to state officials suggesting potential election fraud — a move that Trump briefly entertained before abandoning.
Clark’s exclusion from the indictment further dilutes the narrative the prosecution is trying to build.
The revised indictment also reiterates claims that Trump pressured Pence to refuse to certify the electoral vote count. However, it now leaves it to Judge Chutkan to decide what qualifies as an official act — a crucial point given the Supreme Court’s recent ruling.
Trump, unsurprisingly, slammed the new indictment, taking to Truth Social to voice his frustration.
“No Presidential Candidate, or Candidate for any Office, has ever had to put up with all of this Lawfare and Weaponization directly out of the Office of a Political Opponent,” he wrote.
Trump didn’t hold back, accusing the Democrats of weaponizing the justice system to interfere with the upcoming 2024 election. He singled out Kamala Harris, calling this “Kamala’s Weaponized System against her Political Opponent” and vowed that these “scams” would fail, just as previous hoaxes had.
Sources close to the situation told Fox News that the superseding indictment isn’t likely to expedite the case and that a trial before the November election remains improbable.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
