Trump seeks to block release of special counsel report

Donald Trump’s lawyers have asked the Department of Justice (DoJ) not to publish the special counsel’s report laying out its investigations into the US president-elect.

Jack Smith led two investigations into Trump, one into alleged attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss and another into his apparent mishandling of classified documents.

Both cases have been closed, but Mr Smith’s detailed report was due to be published in the coming days.

But in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, Trump’s lawyers urged him to end the “militarization of the justice system” and turn over the report to them.

The correspondence alleges that Smith did not have the legal authority to file the report because he was unconstitutionally chosen to do the job and was politically motivated. Smith has not yet responded publicly.

Trump’s legal team received a draft copy of the report over the weekend.

Both investigations led to criminal charges against Trump, but both have since been dismissed, in part because of a long-standing Justice Department policy of not prosecuting a sitting president.

The former president pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing.

Federal regulations decree that any special counsel investigation must conclude with a report to the Justice Department, and Garland has previously said he would release all such reports.

During his time outside the White House, Trump faced a series of legal cases, which were successfully delayed and thwarted by his lawyers and allies.

Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration faced accusations from Trump’s opponents that they brought cases against the Republican too slowly, while Trump supporters argued the prosecutions were politically motivated.

One of Smith’s two cases concerned Trump’s attempts to overturn the result of the 2020 election, which he lost to Biden.

Trump pleaded not guilty to the charges and the case ended up in legal limbo after the Supreme Court ruled that Trump had partial immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts committed while in office.

Smith later resubmitted his case but closed it after Trump’s victory in the 2024 election.

He was also leading a case against Trump for his alleged mishandling of classified documents. after leaving the White House following his first presidency, accusations that Trump also denied.

This case faced its own hurdle when the Trump-appointed judge dismissed the charges, arguing that Smith was improperly appointed to lead the case. Once again, Mr. Smith responded, this time with an appeal, but then abandoned this as well.

Justice Department guidelines prevent criminal prosecution of a sitting president. Mr. Smith clarified that this legal protection also applied to the prosecution of a private citizen who was subsequently elected president.

The news was celebrated by the Trump campaign, which hailed it as a “major victory for the rule of law.”

Smith is also expected to leave his job before Trump returns to the White House on Jan. 20 and threatens to fire him.

Despite his recent legal victories, Trump still faces sentencing on Friday after being convicted in New York last year of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to conceal payments made to a porn star.

With less than two weeks until Trump is reopened as president of the United States, the judge rejected a request for a delay, although he previously made clear that he will not consider giving Trump a prison sentence.