The Justice Department released its final report on January 14 regarding the election subversion case involving former President Donald Trump. This report, prepared by special counsel Jack Smith, includes significant details about how Trump allegedly attempted to maintain his grip on power after losing the 2020 presidential election.
The report claims that the Justice Department had enough evidence to prosecute Trump for election interference. Smith noted that if Trump had not won the 2024 election, they could have moved forward with the prosecution. The document emphasizes that “but for Mr. Trump’s election…the admissible evidence was sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction at trial.”
Covering over 137 pages, the report asserts that Trump engaged in numerous illegal actions to hang onto power following his defeat to President Joe Biden. Allegations include pressuring state officials to disregard lawful vote counts and compelling his then-Vice President Mike Pence, along with other officials, to act against their duties to serve his personal interests.
The report further claims that Trump collaborated with others to overturn the election results and inspired his supporters to engage in violent actions on January 6, 2021, in a bid to disrupt the congressional certification of the election. It also highlights that Trump made false claims about fraudulent votes, despite being informed by top officials in his administration that there was no evidence for his assertions.
Smith expressed strong support for his decision to prosecute Trump, stating that not doing so would have been neglecting his responsibilities.
In response to the report’s release, Trump took to his social media platform to criticize Smith, calling him an incompetent prosecutor who failed to act before the election, which he claims to have won by a large margin.
Smith’s investigations into Trump led to two major cases: one focusing on Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and the other concerning his handling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. Although Trump was indicted in both cases during 2023, various delays prevented a trial before the 2024 presidential election. After Trump’s re-election, Smith dropped the charges and later resigned from the Justice Department to avoid possible dismissal by Trump.
Despite Trump’s avoidance of federal charges, outgoing Attorney General Merrick Garland emphasized that the public deserves to see Smith’s findings regarding Trump. In an effort to promote transparency, Garland has committed to releasing all special counsel reports from his time in office, though he has opted to withhold some details related to Trump’s document investigation until co-defendants in that case are tried.
