Washington, D.C.—U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith has concluded that former President Donald Trump engaged in an “unprecedented criminal effort” to retain power after losing the 2020 election, according to a report published on Tuesday. The detailed findings reveal that Trump was accused of plotting to obstruct the collection and certification of votes following his defeat by President Joe Biden.
Smith brought a four-count indictment against Trump, alleging conspiracy to obstruct the election certification, defraud the United States of accurate election results, and deprive U.S. voters of their voting rights. The report states that the evidence would have been sufficient for conviction at trial, but Trump’s imminent return to the presidency on January 20 made prosecution impossible due to longstanding Department of Justice policy against indicting a sitting president.
“The claim from Mr. Trump that my decisions as a prosecutor were influenced or directed by the Biden administration or other political actors is, in a word, laughable,” Smith wrote in a letter accompanying the report, defending his investigation and his team.
In response, Trump took to his Truth Social platform, labeling Smith a “lamebrain prosecutor who was unable to get his case tried before the election.” Trump’s legal team also criticized the report in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, calling it a “politically motivated attack” and arguing that its release ahead of Trump’s return to the White House would harm the presidential transition.
The report sheds light on previously undisclosed details, including that prosecutors contemplated charging Trump under the Insurrection Act for allegedly inciting the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. However, they concluded there was insufficient evidence to prove that Trump intended the full scope of the violence that occurred during the riot, which aimed to halt Congress from certifying the election results.
While the indictment did not proceed to trial, it identified several co-conspirators who may have assisted Trump in his efforts. The report indicates that prosecutors considered charges against these individuals but did not reach final conclusions.
A second section of the report focuses on allegations that Trump illegally retained sensitive national security documents after leaving office in 2021. The Department of Justice has withheld this portion from public release due to ongoing legal proceedings against two Trump associates charged in connection with the case.
Smith, who departed the Justice Department last week, stated that he dropped both cases against Trump after last year’s election, emphasizing that prosecuting a sitting president would violate Department policy. Neither case proceeded to trial.
Trump, who has pleaded not guilty to all charges, has consistently portrayed the investigations as politically motivated attempts to undermine his campaign and political movement. His attempts to block the report’s release were rebuffed by the courts, clearing the way for its publication just days before his scheduled return to the Oval Office on January 20.
