Special counsel Jack Smith and his staff intend to resign prior to the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.
The Justice Department's longstanding stance is that it is prohibited from charging a sitting president with a crime, as The New York Post reported. Consequently, Smith's office has been assessing the most effective approach to conclude its work on the two outstanding federal criminal cases against president Trump.
Smith's resignation was initially reported by The New York Times.
The imminent question in the weeks ahead is whether Smith's final report, which delineates his prosecution decisions, will be disclosed prior to Inauguration Day.
According to rules set down by the Justice Department, the office of the special counsel must submit a confidential report to the office of the attorney general, who has the option to make it public.
During a radio interview in late October, Trump stated that he would promptly remove Smith from his position as special counsel if he were to be re-elected.
“It’s so easy — I would fire him within two seconds,” Trump said, adding that he got “immunity at the Supreme Court."
It is also possible for the incoming attorney general to opt not to make public Smith's final report.
Smith and his colleagues had continued to advance their case against Trump for election involvement prior to his re-election last week. However, a federal judge presiding over the investigation granted the special counsel's office an extension until December 2 to determine the next steps following Trump's victory.
Last year, Trump was indicted by the Justice Department for his attempts to revoke the 2020 presidential election.
However, the Supreme Court's decision in July of this year that Trump enjoys immunity for certain activities he committed as president and the early appeals from Trump's legal team both worked to hinder Smith's case.
A federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment in the case after Smith's team reworked the indictment in August, excluding certain material that the high court had deemed off-limits.
In Florida, the DOJ had also filed charges against Trump for allegedly keeping secret records after leaving office and refusing to return them.
In July, however, the case was dismissed by a federal court that ruled that Smith's appointment was unlawful. We are still reviewing that matter.
In response to the former president's initial indictment, Smith promised a speedy trial. However, in both instances, Trump's legal team managed to postpone proceedings, and during his campaign, Trump frequently criticized Smith in public and on social media.
