Special prosecutor takes new action on two cases against Trump

According to AFP, former US President Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 US presidential election not only brought him back to the White House but also saved him from legal battles.

American media outlets have declared Trump the winner in more than half of the 50 US states, including key battleground states like Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, all of which voted for the Democratic Party in the 2020 election.

That gives Trump at least 294 electoral votes, exceeding the 270 needed to win the election, according to AFP. So far, Democratic presidential candidate and US Vice President Kamala Harris has secured 223 electoral votes.

Trump's election victory not only brought him back to the White House but also saved him from looming legal battles and soaring legal bills, according to AFP.

Former US President Donald Trump (left, in October 2024) and Special Counsel Jack Smith (in August 2023)

NBC News and CNN reported on November 6th that Special Counsel Jack Smith spoke with Justice Department officials about gradually closing two federal lawsuits against former President Trump, just hours after Trump's victory was announced in the American press. They stated that this move was in line with the long-standing Justice Department policy that a sitting US president cannot be criminally prosecuted.

During the campaign, Trump pledged to his opponent, Vice President Harris, that he would remove Smith from office "within two seconds" of taking office.

Although the US president does not have the authority to dismiss the special prosecutor, Trump can appoint an attorney general to do so. Trump could also simply order the Department of Justice to drop the charges against him, according to AFP.

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Mr. Smith, appointed by U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, filed two lawsuits against Mr. Trump, alleging conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results and mishandling classified documents after leaving the White House.

The election interference case is ongoing in Washington DC but has no trial date yet, and the situation has been further complicated by the US Supreme Court's ruling in July that a former president is immune from criminal prosecution.

Trump is accused of conspiring to deceive America and to obstruct a formal session of Congress. This was a session of Congress convened to certify Biden's victory, which was violently attacked by a mob of Trump supporters on January 6, 2021.

The Trump classified document case was dismissed by a federal judge in Florida, an appointee Trump made during his presidency, on the grounds that Smith's appointment was illegal.

Additionally, Trump also faces two state-level cases in New York and Georgia. Specifically, in New York in May, he was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal payments made to silence pornographic actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.

Mr. Trump was expected to be sentenced in July, but his lawyers have requested that his sentence be overturned under a Supreme Court immunity ruling. Justice Juan Merchan will rule on that request on November 12 and has set the sentencing date, if necessary, for November 26.

In Georgia, Trump faces charges of attempting to sabotage the 2020 election in the state, but the case is likely to be frozen during his term in office under the policy of not prosecuting a sitting president, according to AFP.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/cong-to-vien-dac-biet-co-dong-thai-moi-ve-hai-vu-kien-chong-ong-trump-185241107072305171.htm