Special Prosecutor Jack Smith Leaves Justice Department After Submitting Report on Trump

Jack Smith, the special prosecutor who oversaw the federal cases against Donald Trump, has departed from the Justice Department after submitting his final report. This development has drawn ridicule from Trump, who is set to assume office on January 20, 2025.

According to officials, Smith completed his work and submitted a confidential report on January 7, 2025, before leaving the department on January 10. In a document presented to federal judge Aileen Cannon, officials urged her not to extend her previous order blocking the publication of Smith's final report.

The special prosecutor had previously recommended and secured the cessation of federal charges against Trump related to illegal attempts to overturn the 2020 election results and for retaining classified documents after leaving the White House.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump suggested that Jack Smith had been "fired" from the Justice Department, branding him a disgrace to himself, his family, and his country. "After spending over $100 million on a witch hunt against TRUMP, he left town empty-handed!" he wrote.

Following consultations, the Justice Department concluded that its longstanding policy since the Watergate scandal in 1973—of not prosecuting a sitting president—applies to this unprecedented situation. However, Smith finalized and submitted his confidential report regarding these two cases to the Attorney General.

The Attorney General intends to make public the portion of the report concerning allegations of election interference in 2020 and will submit it to Congress. However, he indicated that he would not publish the section related to Trump's retention of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate to avoid "prejudicing" Trump's two co-defendants still facing charges in that matter.

A court temporarily blocked the publication of the report at the request of Trump's co-defendants, but the Justice Department has appealed this decision.