Before Jack Smith came along — prosecutors were already considering obstruction charges: report

Federal prosecutors considered obstruction charges related to Donald Trump's attempt to overturn the 2020 election months before former U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed special counsel Jack Smith for the case, Politico's Kyle Cheney reports.

Cheney shared screenshots of court documents via X (formerly Twitter) Tuesday, writing, "NEW: A newly unsealed court filing from Sept. 2022 shows that as prosecutors fought to access the emails of John EASTMAN and Jeff CLARK, they were investigating at least two potential charges against Trump-world figures: Obstruction and false statements."

He notes, "A redacted version was released last year, when Judge Howell unsealed key filings that described the intensive effort by prosecutors (before Jack Smith took over) to access Clark/Eastman/Perry comms. But the precise laws at issue were unclear."

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For Politico, Cheney notes, "It's not clear whether the prosecutors at the time were considering bringing the charge against Trump himself or only against people in his orbit. Eventually, Smith did charge Trump with obstruction in the summer of 2023.

He reports, "The filing indicates federal prosecutors began weighing obstruction charges in connection with the Trump probe well before the House's Jan. 6 select committee formally recommended that the former president be indicted on the charge. The 'obstruction of an official proceeding' law — which has now been leveled against more than 300 Jan. 6 defendants — is itself under scrutiny by the Supreme Court, which agreed last week to consider a challenge to the way prosecutors have used it against the pro-Trump rioters."

Cheney also emphasizes, "The new filing underscores the protracted and elaborate process that prosecutors undertook before bringing charges against Trump. Despite Trump's repeated claims that prosecutors timed the criminal charges against him to coincide with his bid to retake the White House, the underlying documents show that the Justice Department fought extensive battles throughout 2022 to access crucial information to support a criminal case."

Six months passed "before the Justice Department would win closed-door court battles to access Clark's emails," Cheney reports.

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Cheney's full report is here.