{"id":2351021,"date":"2024-10-04T23:15:02","date_gmt":"2024-10-05T03:15:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/cnn-legal-analyst-says-theres-no-defending-the-cheap-shot-jack-smith-just-took-against-trump\/"},"modified":"2024-10-04T23:17:12","modified_gmt":"2024-10-05T03:17:12","slug":"cnn-legal-analyst-says-theres-no-defending-the-cheap-shot-jack-smith-just-took-against-trump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/cnn-legal-analyst-says-theres-no-defending-the-cheap-shot-jack-smith-just-took-against-trump\/","title":{"rendered":"CNN Legal Analyst Says There&#8217;s &#8216;No Defending&#8217; the &#8216;Cheap Shot&#8217; Jack Smith Just Took Against Trump"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">32<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcnn-legal-analyst-says-theres-no-defending-the-cheap-shot-jack-smith-just-took-against-trump%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2351021&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>In a recent commentary, former federal prosecutor and CNN\u2064 analyst\u200d Elie\u200c Honig criticized\u2062 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sidney-powell-is-an-american-legal-giant\/\" title=\"Sidney Powell Is an American Legal Giant\">special counsel<\/a> Jack Smith and federal Judge Tanya Chutkan\u2064 for potentially compromising the fairness of\u200c the legal process surrounding Donald Trump&#8217;s\u2063 election interference case. Honig \u200dhighlighted how Smith unsealed a 165-page\u2063 brief containing evidentiary details just as voters were heading to the polls, which he claimed was an attempt to\u2062 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/n-y-attorney-generals-office-discovers-astroturf-lobbying-scheme\/\" title=\"N.Y. Attorney General\u2019s office discovers astroturf lobbying scheme\">sway public opinion<\/a> and \u2062influence\u2062 the election outcome.<\/p>\n<p>Honig emphasized that it\u2063 is against standard legal practice for prosecutors to publicly \u2064disclose evidence \u2062before a trial,\u2063 as it can prejudice the \u2063jury pool and contradicts the principle of presuming a defendant\u2019s innocence.\u2063 He pointed out that such actions are typically \u2062avoided to maintain the integrity of the judicial \u2062system\u200b and uphold the defendant&#8217;s \u200crights.<\/p>\n<p>Chutkan&#8217;s approval of Smith&#8217;s request to publicize evidence \u2014 despite\u2064 acknowledging its procedural\u200d irregularities \u2014 raised further concerns \u200dabout the\u2062 fairness of the proceedings. Critics argue that\u200d this kind of manipulation undermines core Department of Justice policies which state that federal prosecutors should not time\u2064 their actions \u2063to affect \u200belections.<\/p>\n<p>Honig and other\u2063 legal experts,\u200d including Andrew McCarthy, have noted that such\u2064 behavior looks politically motivated rather than legally principled,\u200c suggesting it reflects \u200dan \u200ceffort to influence the upcoming election by \u200bgenerating damaging headlines against Trump. The consensus among these commentators \u200cis that \u2064the revelations \u2064from the\u200c case are less about legal\u2063 merits \u2063and more \u200cabout political maneuvering \u200dahead of the election.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> <script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Former federal prosecutor, now CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig tore into both special counsel Jack Smith and federal Judge Tanya Chutkan for breaking all norms to unseal a court filing in the 2020 election interference cast against Donald Trump just as voters are going to the polls.<\/p>\n<p>The 165-page <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2024\/10\/02\/us\/trump-j6-sco-immunity-brief.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">brief<\/a> contains &ldquo;evidence&rdquo; Smith plans to present, if the case ever goes to trial. So that&rsquo;s a headline Smith clearly wanted to get to the media.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The larger, if less obvious, headline is that Smith has essentially abandoned any pretense; he&rsquo;ll bend any rule, switch up on any practice &mdash; so long as he gets to chip away at Trump&rsquo;s electoral prospects. At this point, there&rsquo;s simply no defending Smith&rsquo;s conduct on any sort of principled or institutional basis,&rdquo; Honig wrote in <a href=\"https:\/\/nymag.com\/intelligencer\/article\/jack-smith-october-surprise-donald-trump.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">article<\/a> for New York Magazine&rsquo;s Intelligencer, titled &ldquo;Jack Smith&rsquo;s October Cheap Shot,&rdquo; published Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>He explained prosecutors do not make their evidence public before the trial begins, because our legal system is structured to protect the defendant, including the presumption of innocence. Making <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/turley-jack-smith-stretched-law-new-trump-indictment\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">prosecutor&rsquo;s evidence<\/a> public before trial can taint the jury pool.<\/p>\n<p>There are pre-trial hearings and motions to determine exactly what evidence will be permitted to be presented to the jury, based on its source, reliability and other considerations.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">The special counsel had information he wanted to make public. But he bent important rules to do so, writes legal columnist Elie Honig. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/IfHoBPV1Me\">https:\/\/t.co\/IfHoBPV1Me<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; New York Magazine (@NYMag) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NYMag\/status\/1841828763438383432?\">October 3, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>  &ldquo;The way motions work &mdash; under the federal rules, and consistent with common sense &mdash; is that the prosecutor files an indictment; the defense makes motions (to dismiss charges, to suppress evidence, or what have you); and then the prosecution responds to those motions. Makes sense, right? It&rsquo;s worked for hundreds of years in our courts,&rdquo; Honig wrote.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Not here. Not when there&rsquo;s an election right around the corner and dwindling opportunity to make a dent. So Smith turned the well-established, thoroughly uncontroversial rules of criminal procedure on their head and asked Judge Chutkan for permission to file first &mdash; even with no actual defense motion pending,&rdquo; the legal analyst continued.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Trump&rsquo;s team objected, and the judge acknowledged that Smith&rsquo;s request to file first was &lsquo;procedurally irregular&rsquo; &mdash; moments before she ruled in Smith&rsquo;s favor, as she&rsquo;s done at virtually every consequential turn,&rdquo; Honig said.<\/p>\n<p>The lawyer further elaborated that allowing the unchallenged evidence to be made public prior to this whole process is very prejudicial to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-calls-jack-smiths-new-court-move-pure-election-interference\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Yet Smith now uses grand-jury testimony (which ordinarily remains secret at this stage) and drafts up a tidy 165-page document that contains all manner of damaging statements about a criminal defendant, made outside of a trial setting and without being subjected to the rules of evidence or cross-examination, and files it publicly, generating national headlines. You know who&rsquo;ll see those allegations? The voters, sure &mdash; and also members of the jury pool,&rdquo; Honig recounted.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to these considerations, &ldquo;Smith&rsquo;s conduct here violates core DOJ principle and policy,&rdquo; he wrote.<\/p>\n<p>Honig noted that the DOJ&rsquo;s Justice Manual &mdash; its internal policy guidelines &mdash; contains a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/jm\/jm-9-85000-protection-government-integrity#9-85.500\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">section<\/a> titled &ldquo;Actions That May Have an Impact on the Election.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>It reads, in part, &ldquo;Federal prosecutors &hellip; may never select the timing of any action, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-argues-doj-violated-its-own-policy-by-filing-superseding-indictment-against-him-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Trump argues DOJ \u2018violated its own policy\u2019 by filing superseding indictment against him - Washington Examiner\">including investigative steps<\/a>, criminal charges, or statements, for the purpose of affecting any election.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Honig argued how could Smith&rsquo;s &ldquo;irregular&rdquo; request to make the prosecutors&rsquo; evidentiary document public be interpreted any other way but to seek to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-calls-jack-smiths-new-court-move-pure-election-interference\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">impact the result<\/a> of an election?<\/p>\n<p>Former federal prosecutor Andrew McCarthy agreed, writing in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/2024\/10\/jack-smiths-damning-political-and-legally-flawed-j6-filing-against-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">piece<\/a> for National Review, &ldquo;This is not a legal exercise, it&rsquo;s a political one.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;A prosecutor&rsquo;s case, like a football team&rsquo;s game plan, never looks better than it does on paper, before it experiences first contact with the opposing team,&rdquo; he pointed out.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;And in a normal case, a submission such as Smith&rsquo;s, and the judge&rsquo;s decision to broadcast it publicly, would be seen as an attempt to prejudice the jury pool against the defendant,&rdquo; McCarthy said.<\/p>\n<p>He then explained, as Honig did, that evidence is not really evidence that matters until it goes through the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-program-allowing-migrants-from-venezuela-other-countries-challenged-in-texas-court\/\" title=\"Texas Court Challenges Biden&#039;s Program Allowing Venezuelan and Other Migrants\">proper legal process<\/a>. &ldquo;As a rule, we don&rsquo;t get to see all the evidence until the trial begins. That&rsquo;s intentional: It ensures that evidence is presented under controlled circumstances.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The judge instructs the jury from the outset that the allegations are proof of nothing; that the defendant is presumed innocent; that the prosecutor bears the burden of proving the case in the courtroom, not on paper; that the defense has a right to object to testimony and documents, and therefore such evidence is irrelevant until the court has ruled on those objections; and that the only thing that matters is the jury&rsquo;s assessment of the testimony and other evidence as they are admitted in the courtroom,&rdquo; McCarthy wrote.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Chutkan has not appended Smith&rsquo;s submission with any of those fundamental due-process protections. She has just released it to the press &mdash; the opposite of what a judge concerned about the jury pool and the defendant&rsquo;s fair-trial rights would do,&rdquo; he continued.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;But again, this is not a legal exercise, it&rsquo;s a political one,&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trumps-right-scotus-step-stop-interference-new-york-2024-election\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">McCarthy<\/a> concluded.<\/p>\n<p>It&rsquo;s nice to see legal thinkers from both left and right media outlets agreeing: Smith and Chutkan colluded to try to impact the outcome of next month&rsquo;s election against Trump.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\">  <\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> <label>* Name<\/label> <br \/> <input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> <\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> <label>* <\/label> <br \/> <input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> <\/div>\n<p> <label>* Message<\/label> <br \/> <textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea>  <\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> <input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\">  <\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script>  <\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\">  <\/div>\n<style> \t\t\t \t\t\t.insticator-unit.type-commenting{margin: 0 10px 25px 10px}@media screen and (max-width:1060px){#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{margin: 0 auto 25px auto !important;}}#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{height: 280px !important; width: 336px !important} \t\t<\/style>\n<div class=\"insticator-unit type-commenting\">\n<div class=\"insticator-ads\">   <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> <\/div>\n<div class=\"insticator-ads additional\">   <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former federal prosecutor and current CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig criticized special counsel Jack Smith and Judge Tanya Chutkan for violating established norms by unsealing a court filing related to the 2020 election interference case against Donald Trump just as voters are heading to the polls. The 165-page document includes &#8220;evidence&#8221; that Smith intends to use if the case goes to trial, which Honig suggests was intended for media attention. He argues that this action undermines the principles of fairness in the legal process, as it could influence potential jurors and violates Department of Justice guidelines regarding actions that may affect elections<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2351022,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/smith-v-trump.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[9373,32463,33846],"class_list":["post-2351021","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-cnn","tag-jack-smith","tag-legal-analyst"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/smith-v-trump.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2351021","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2351021"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2351021\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2351022"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2351021"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2351021"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2351021"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}