A federal judge has unsealed a filing from Special Counsel Jack Smith in the ongoing election case against former President Donald Trump. Trump blasted the Department of Justice (DOJ), claiming the unsealed filing represents blatant “election interference.”
Judge Unseals Special Counsel’s Filing
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan for the District of Columbia on Wednesday unsealed Smith’s 165-page filing.
The document, submitted by Smith’s office, outlines the evidence and case the special counsel intends to present in an eventual trial against Trump.
The filing provides a detailed account of what Smith’s team alleges were Trump’s efforts to stay in power following his defeat in the 2020 election.
The newly-unsealed filing accuses Trump of conspiring with private co-conspirators to overturn the legitimate election results in seven battleground states, including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
Smith claims that Trump attempted to manipulate state officials, produce fraudulent electoral votes, and enlist then-Vice President Mike Pence to obstruct Congress’s certification of the election results.
“When these efforts failed, Trump directed an angry crowd of supporters to the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, to disrupt the congressional certification process,” Smith wrote.
Trump Pleads Not Guilty, Blasts DOJ
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges brought against him by the special counsel. He asserted that Smith’s case is nothing more than a politically motivated attack aimed at sabotaging his 2024 campaign.
The former president expressed his frustration on Truth Social, calling the case a prime example of “election interference.”
“Democrats are weaponizing the Justice Department against me because they know I am WINNING, and they are desperate to prop up their failing Candidate, Kamala Harris,” Trump posted. “This latest hit job happened right after J.D. Vance humiliated Tim Walz in the Debate.”
Trump further accused the DOJ of becoming “nothing more than an extension of Joe’s, and now Kamala’s, Campaign,” adding that the unsealed filing represents egregious “prosecutorial misconduct.”
He stated that Democrats are attempting to destroy democracy and that their actions amount to “the Worst Election Interference in American History.”
Special Counsel’s Response and Allegations
The unsealed filing also reveals communications between Trump and his inner circle, showing that individuals close to him informed him that his claims of widespread voter fraud were baseless. Despite these warnings, Smith claims Trump continued his efforts to overturn the results.
According to the filing, Trump’s personal attorney told him that the campaign was “looking into his fraud claims and had even hired external experts to do so, but could find no support for them.”
The attorney allegedly warned Trump that if they took the claims to court, “they would get slaughtered because the claims are all ‘bullsh—.’”
Smith detailed a series of private lunches between Trump and Pence, where Pence allegedly encouraged Trump to accept the results of the election and look forward to a potential 2024 run.
Trump’s refusal to concede, the filing claims, led him to take increasingly desperate measures to overturn the legitimate results.
Trump Campaign Slams Filing as ‘Unconstitutional Witch Hunt’
In response to the unsealed document, Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung echoed the former president’s sentiments, calling the release of the filing an “unconstitutional witch hunt.”
“This entire case is a partisan, unconstitutional witch hunt that should be dismissed entirely, together with all the remaining Democrat hoaxes,” Cheung said. “President Trump is dominating, and the Radical Democrats throughout the Deep State are freaking out.”
Cheung claimed the timing of the filing’s release was intended to shift attention away from Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, after his “disastrous debate performance” against Trump’s running mate, Senator J.D. Vance.
Legal Maneuvering and Supreme Court Rulings
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court ruled that a sitting president is immune from prosecution for official acts. As a result, Smith was forced to revise his charges against Trump, narrowing and reframing allegations while keeping the core criminal charges intact.
Smith argues that Trump’s actions were not protected by presidential immunity because they involved private actors and campaign infrastructure, making them part of a “private scheme” rather than official presidential conduct.
Judge Chutkan has set the deadlines for replies and paperwork from both federal prosecutors and Trump’s legal team for November 7 — after Election Day. She has stated that she will not hold the trial until after the 2024 presidential election.
Trump Criticizes DOJ Timing and ‘60-Day Rule’ Violation
Trump highlighted the DOJ’s violation of its own “60-day rule” — an unwritten guideline that discourages the DOJ from taking major legal action that could affect elections within 60 days of Election Day.
“For 60 days prior to an election, the Department of Injustice is supposed to do absolutely nothing that would taint or interfere with a case,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “They disobeyed their own rule in favor of complete and total election interference. I did nothing wrong, they did!”
Trump argued that the timing of the release was meant to harm his campaign, calling it a “scam” similar to the other cases brought against him by Jack Smith, whom he labeled as “deranged.”
The release of this filing adds further skepticism about the justice system’s integrity.