New Trump Special Counsel Is A ‘Left Wing Hatchet Man’
Post by Tyler Durden | Written by Eva Fu via The Epoch Times
The newly appointed special counsel to oversee probes related to former President Donald Trump is a “left wing hatchet man” in pursuit of a “witch hunt,” according to former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) talks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Sept. 22, 2022. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Attorney General Merrick Garland’s pick for the role is Jack Smith, a registered independent and a veteran federal prosecutor who most recently served as the chief prosecutor of the special court in The Hague.
Coming days after Trump officially declared his 2024 presidential candidacy, the appointment put Smith in charge of two investigations: one involving Trump’s handling of classified materials in Mar-a-Lago, and another on the alleged interference of the transition of power following the 2020 presidential election and the certification of electoral votes.
American Prosecutor Jack Smith presides during the presentation of the Kosovar former president Hashim Thaci for the first time before a war crimes court in The Hague on Nov. 9, 2020, to face charges relating to the 1990s conflict with Serbia. (Jerry Lampen/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
While proponents of the move have applauded Smith’s appointment, pointing to his long career fighting corruption, Gingrich, an Epoch Times contributor, does not agree.
“This guy is not an independent counsel. He’s a left wing hatchet man,” he said in an interview, describing Garland’s choice as “outrageous.”
“I think the Justice Department figured out that when Trump announced for president that they couldn’t just continue the normal process, because they have always avoided prosecuting candidates,” he said.
(Left) Former President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., on Jan. 31, 2022. (The Epoch Times); (Right) Attorney General Merrick Garland at the Department of Justice in Washington on July 6, 2022. (Bonnie Cash/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
“But what they’re doing is it absurd,” he added.
“Most Americans will rapidly figure out this is one more example of the kind of witch hunt that has been dealing with the whole process of the Trump candidacy, starting in 2015.”
Following Garland’s announcement, the White House denied foreknowledge, saying that the Department of Justice “makes decisions about its criminal investigation independently.”
While Smith, in a statement, pledged to carry out the investigations “independently and in the best traditions of the Department of Justice,” Gingrich remains skeptical, citing Smith’s record working under the Obama administration.
During the five years serving as the Justice Department’s public integrity chief from 2010, Smith oversaw the conviction of former Virginia Governor, Republican Bob McDonnell, on bribery and extortion charges. The Supreme Court later unanimously reversed the conviction, ruling that the government’s “boundless interpretation of the federal bribery statute” was unconstitutional.
The former speaker called Smith’s impartiality into question, citing his involvement in what Gingrich called the IRS scandal. The House Oversight Committee in 2014 found Smith to be responsible for arranging a meeting with an official in the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to scrutinize nonprofits’ political activities. This meeting would set in motion the IRS’s campaign targeting Tea Party groups, which later resulted in a public apology from the agency and a $3.5 million Justice Department settlement for two lawsuits.
Selective Prosecution
Gingrich also pointed to the absence of similar treatment to Democrat politicians, such as former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who used a private email server for government business, and the president’s son Hunter Biden, whose foreign business dealings are set to be a top focus of a new Republican House from January.
“I think that it is strange that they can find one more excuse to go after Donald Trump even though he keeps getting found innocent, but neither Hillary Clinton nor Hunter Biden have gotten independent counsel, and it tells you how corrupted the system is,” Gingrich said.
Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, attends an event at the White House in Washington on April 18, 2022. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), who is in line to chair the House Oversight Committee, said the committee Republicans have found business deals by the Biden family in more than 50 countries, including Russia and China which were often led by Hunter. They also allege that the elder Biden had knowledge of and was involved in some deals.
Tony Bobulinski, Hunter’s former business partner, has welcomed Republicans’ plan to probe the Biden family’s business operations in the hopes that it will prove the senior Biden played a part.
Trump’s Reaction
Gingrich was at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort when the news of the special counsel appointment came out. Trump, he said, seemed “very balanced,” “positive, and cheerful.”
“He knew what they were doing. He’s been through this now for six years,” he said.
Read more here…
*********
(TLB) published this article as posted by Tyler Durden and written by Eva Fu via The Epoch Times
Header featured image (edited) credit: Smith/Trump/MSNBC / Getty Images; Zuma Press file
Emphasis added by (TLB) editors
••••
••••
Stay tuned to …
••••
The Liberty Beacon Project is now expanding at a near exponential rate, and for this we are grateful and excited! But we must also be practical. For 7 years we have not asked for any donations, and have built this project with our own funds as we grew. We are now experiencing ever increasing growing pains due to the large number of websites and projects we represent. So we have just installed donation buttons on our websites and ask that you consider this when you visit them. Nothing is too small. We thank you for all your support and your considerations … (TLB)
••••
Comment Policy: As a privately owned web site, we reserve the right to remove comments that contain spam, advertising, vulgarity, threats of violence, racism, or personal/abusive attacks on other users. This also applies to trolling, the use of more than one alias, or just intentional mischief. Enforcement of this policy is at the discretion of this websites administrators. Repeat offenders may be blocked or permanently banned without prior warning.
••••
Disclaimer: TLB websites contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available to our readers under the provisions of “fair use” in an effort to advance a better understanding of political, health, economic and social issues. The material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving it for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material for purposes other than “fair use” you must request permission from the copyright owner.
••••
Disclaimer: The information and opinions shared are for informational purposes only including, but not limited to, text, graphics, images and other material are not intended as medical advice or instruction. Nothing mentioned is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
Leave a Reply