'hey should not be permitted to gesture at a baseless legal argument, call it 'novel,' and then claim that the Court will require an indefinite continuance in order to resolve it,' wrote Smith and Harbach.Īs for the heavy volume of documents and video footage in the case, the special counsel lawyers pointed out that there are only about 4,500 'key' pages and nearly one-third of the over 800,000 pages consists of non-content email header and footer information for two email account holders. Smith also scoffed at the defense plan to use the Presidential Records Act as a shield, pointing out that post-Watergate law is not a criminal statute and it does not cover the alleged hoarding of national security secrets. They said Trump's expected challenge to the authority of the special counsel would likely fail, as similar efforts did at least twice before, in the Nixon era and during Trump's own tenure in the White House. 'There is simply no question any trial of this action during the pendency of a Presidential election will impact both the outcome of that election and, importantly, the ability of the Defendants to obtain a fair trial,' wrote Trump attorneys Christopher Kise and Todd Blanche.īut federal prosecutors are pushing back on the idea of a significant delay. This week, Trump and Nauta suggested Judge Aileen Cannon postpone the trial, perhaps until after the results of the presidential election, where Trump is running for the Republican nomination. He's also accused of conspiring to obstruct the FBI investigation alongside his valet Walt Nauta, who allegedly moved boxes to evade government scrutiny. Trump faces dozens of felony charges for willful retention of national security information, including highly classified papers he allegedly stored in a ballroom and a bathroom at his Florida resort. 'The legal issues Defendants raise do not justify deviation from a speedy trial date, much less open-ended deferral of considering one,' wrote Smith and assistant special counsel David Harbach.

In a new court filing, Smith wrote that one of Trump's legal arguments 'borders on frivolous' and said there's no evidence that waiting until after the 2024 presidential election would make the process any easier. Special counsel Jack Smith told a federal judge there is 'no basis in law or fact' for indefinitely postponing the federal trial of former President Donald Trump and urged the court to proceed with jury selection in December. Smith has asked a court not to delay Trump's trial indefinitely as the former president has requested. Special counsel Jack Smith speaks to reporters last month in Washington.

Reading smith chart .pdf