By james art Donald Trump told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Thursday that if elected president, he would fire special counsel Jack Smith “within two seconds” of taking office.
Smith was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland as an independent special counsel to oversee Donald Trump’s federal cases. In doing so, Garland tried to avoid a conflict of interest — if the Justice Department isn’t going after Trump directly, then it doesn’t look like the Biden administration is going after Trump.
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The claim
Donald Trump claims he can fire Jack Smith, thereby getting rid of two federal cases.
Trump was indicted in Washington on four counts of working to overturn the results of the 2020 election ahead of the January 6, 2021 riot at the US Capitol. The Republican presidential candidate has pleaded not guilty and said the case is part of a political witch hunt.
The other case is in Florida for allegedly storing classified documents. Judge Eileen Cannon dismissed the case in Florida, and Smith is currently appealing that decision. Trump had pleaded not guilty.
Newsweek sought comment by email from Trump’s lawyer and Jack Smith’s office on Friday.
The facts
Trump previously asked to fire the special counsel. During Trump’s first presidency, special counsel Robert Mueller investigated alleged ties between Trump and the Russian government.
Trump told White House counsel Don McGahn to get the Justice Department to fire Mueller. McGahn refused to do so, fearing it was illegal, and threatened to resign rather than comply with the order.
Trump backed down and Mueller was cleared to continue his investigation and write his report.
The second obstacle Trump will face is possible impeachment.
This was mentioned by Hugh Hewitt in the interview when he asked Trump if Congress would impeach him for firing Smith.
Trump responded: “I don’t think I’m going to be impeached if I fire Jack Smith. Jack Smith is a scoundrel.”
But during the crisis over Mueller’s firing, Republicans warned the president he would face possible impeachment for doing so, while acknowledging they could act only after Mueller was fired.
Republican Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona released a statement at the time warning: “We are asking the president not to fire the special counsel. Don’t create a constitutional crisis… Congress cannot prevent such a dismissal. Our only constitutional remedy is ex post facto, through impeachment.”
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham told a gathering of reporters at the time that the firing “could be the beginning of the end of the Trump presidency.”
He later warned that it would be “corrupt” and “will be a constitutional crisis”.
The solution
Unverified.
Possible, but unlikely. Legal advisers would likely tell Trump not to, as they did during the Mueller crisis.
If Trump ignores their views, he could face an impeachment hearing in the Senate and some Republican senators could vote against him.
However, Trump has been through two impeachment attempts before, including one after Mueller released his report. It’s possible that Trump will try to ride out the storm and fire Jack Smith.
He may decide it’s not worth it. As it stands, one of his two federal cases has been dismissed. The only remaining case, an election fraud indictment in Washington, D.C., was severely neutered by the Supreme Court’s July 1 ruling on presidential immunity.
Additionally, the Department of Justice has written instructions not to prosecute a sitting president. Trump would not face trial until he leaves office.
NEWSWEEK FACT CHECK