Fox News' Jonathan Turley downplays Jack Smith’s filing alleging Donald Trump attempted “to overturn the election”
Published
Citation From the October 2, 2024, edition of Fox News' Special Report with Bret Baier
BRET BAIER (HOST): I'm struck by this release. We knew it may come and that the judge in this case, Judge Chutkan, would allow this. But in this filing, United States v. Trump, is this quote: "At its core, the defendant's scheme was a private one. He extensively used private actors and his campaign infrastructure to attempt to overturn the election results and operated in a private capacity as a candidate for office." This massive filing, in summary, is an effort to put out all the details without going to trial before the election, right?
JONATHAN TURLEY (GUEST): It is. The timing is concerning. Jack Smith knows that this election will be the largest jury verdict in history. And this comes across as his closing election argument. You know, this is the argument against Trump. It's one sided. It's quite elaborate. But it is an argument that he wants out there before the election. And that will remain troubling for a lot of people. It's not going to change a lot of minds, but, you know, he goes through every detail here.
What's striking about the filing is it all turns on what Trump honestly believed. You know, he says that the through line of these charges -- this is a quote -- was deceit. Well, the president had attorneys saying that he did have a basis to challenge the election and that there could be a certification challenge. Democrats in the past had used this law to challenge certification. So, it comes down to a question of was it deceit. And, you know -- for many people, this is sort of a repackaging without substantive changes. The Supreme Court handed down a major ruling on presidential immunity. Smith kept the same four basic claims and he just stripped out some references to official conduct. And now, he has this mantra saying it's all private to try to thread that needle to preserve the case.