Former Special Counsel Jack Smith gave testimony to the House Judiciary Committee last Thursday, where this exchange occurred:
… Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt., asked Smith if he believes Trump’s Justice Department “will find some way to indict you?”
“I believe they will do everything in their power to do that because they’ve been ordered to by the President,” Smith answered. Trump has previously called on the Justice Department to investigate his political opponents, which has obliged, bringing indictments against several of them.
“I will not be intimidated,” Smith said. “I think these statements are also made as a warning to others, what will happen if they stand up.” [MS NOW]
Driving the point home is the article’s secondary:
During Smith’s testimony, President Donald Trump used his social media platform to call on Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate the former special prosecutor.
And Smith, a very experienced prosecutor, was hoping for precisely that.
I, and I suspect a lot of other folk with qualifications far beyond mine[1], consider AG Bondi corrupt for using the DoJ to investigate and prosecute the President’s political enemies, those who the man-child in the Oval Office thinks are persecuting him – keeping in mind he’s a pathological narcissist who believes the world revolves around him.
There have been three results of prime importance to those of us who read the tea leaves.
First, those US Attorneys assigned these cases have resigned in droves – from the top guy on down for each office given these tasks. There is one exception, the US Attorney for DC Jeanine Pirro, late of Fox News and notorious Trump supporter.- Getting these felony cases through grand juries has suddenly proven a challenge, an unexpected challenge because it’s not generally difficult to persuade a grand jury, who does not necessarily hear from the defense, that there’s a case to be had.
- But when a fourth-rate prosecutor, such as Lindsay Halligan, does get a case to a judge, the judge dismisses it, usually with a reprimand. In the Comey case, for example, the reprimand seems to have a final result of Halligan being declared ineligible for the position; Halligan left the position after more judges reprimanded her for claiming to be a US Attorney. The humiliation was tangible.
Now Smith has direct evidence that the President has weaponized the DoJ, aka corruption, another crime for which he can be tried as he tries to take revenge. It won’t matter how many attorneys Trump employs in his defense, because he employs 4th-raters; all better defense attorneys know of his habit not to pay for services and micromanage the cases, usually to his detriment.
Smith may be licking his lips in happy anticipation.
