The federal prosecutor Jack Smith is telling the judge in charge of the case involving classified documents from former President Donald Trump that he shouldn’t think about a different opinion written by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas that questions his power as a special counsel.
For Friday, Smith said in court that he agreed to be briefed on the Supreme Court’s decision on presidential protection and how it applies to Trump’s case in Florida. But he tried to stop U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon from taking Thomas’s view into account, even though Trump’s lawyers say it should be talked about.
Lawyers in Smith’s office wrote that the “single-justice concurrence” did not bind the court and did not give a good reason to go against what all other courts have found, which is that the Attorney General is legally allowed to name a Special Counsel.
Thomas had said that Smith’s position as special counsel might be against the Constitution’s rules on who can make appointments and how offices can be made.
As the saying goes, “If there is no law creating the office that the Special Counsel holds, then he cannot move forward with this prosecution.” “A private citizen cannot bring a criminal case against anyone, not even a former president,” Thomas wrote.
In their request for more information, Trump’s lawyers brought up Thomas’ agreement, saying that it “adds force to the motions relating to the Appointments and Appropriations Clauses.”
Trump’s lawyers wouldn’t say anything about Smith’s filing on Friday.
About a week ago, Cannon decided to let more briefing happen about how the Supreme Court’s decision on presidential immunity would affect the case. This is when the special counsel filed their report.
This month, the Supreme Court decided on a part of Trump’s federal election interference case, which is also being prosecuted by Smith’s office. The decision said that Trump is not responsible for certain core presidential tasks from his time in office. It was decided by the court that other so-called official acts are also likely to be immune, but not private ones.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to charges that he kept national defense information after leaving office and told people to delete security footage from his Florida home. The trial was supposed to start in May, but it was pushed back, and a new date has not yet been set.
