Jack Smith Drops Election Interference Case Against Trump

Special counsel Jack Smith announced on Monday that he would drop the federal case against President-elect Donald Trump for allegedly interfering with the 2020 election.

The Details: Smith submitted a 6-page court filing on Monday seeking to dismiss the election interference charges against Trump, characterizing the move as required by the Constitution and “not based on the merits or strength of the case.” Federal judge Tanya Chutkan formally dismissed the case later in the day.

For Context: Trump has said he would fire Smith upon taking office. In July, Trump-appointed federal judge Aileen Cannon dismissed a separate case against Trump for mishandling classified documents, stating that Smith’s appointment as special counsel was unconstitutional. In September, another federal judge indefinitely delayed Trump’s sentencing for his conviction on bribery charges. And Trump’s attorneys are seeking to dismiss a separate election interference case in Georgia.

Key Quote: After the announcement, Vice President-elect J.D. Vance wrote on X, “If Donald J. Trump had lost an election, he may very well have spent the rest of his life in prison. These prosecutions were always political. Now it's time to ensure what happened to President Trump never happens in this country again.”

How The Media Covered It: Breitbart (Right bias) called the news a “triumph” for Trump and included celebratory quotes from Trump allies. CNN (Lean Left) and ZeroHedge (Lean Right) both called Smith’s cases a “criminal pursuit” of Trump. ZeroHedge brought up an alleged improper romantic relationship between prosecutors in the Georgia case. CNN and Reuters (Center) mentioned January 6th, while Breitbart and ZeroHedge did not.