'A tour de force': Experts reveal Jack Smith’s 'sly' additions to new Trump filing
Special counsel Jack Smith's team didn't pull any punches in its new filing contesting Donald Trump's claims of absolute presidential immunity in the former president's D.C. election subversion case, numerous legal experts said on Saturday.
Smith's motion, which former federal prosecutor Joyce Vance said could force Trump to move more quickly when it comes to his Supreme Court immunity appeal, argued that the ex-president was "wrong" to say his acts were within the parameters of his presidential duties.
But legal professionals online noticed some easter eggs, and flagged some other key points buried deep within the more than 80-page filing.
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Several onlookers noticed, for instance, that the filing was targeted for Supreme Court review. Specifically, according to those who read the motion, it was meant to be read by the conservative justices on the bench.
Legal expert and former Justice Department prosecutor Andrew Weissmann commented on a post by a fellow legal analyst, pointing out that the filing was "classic Dreeben," referencing former Deputy Solicitor General Michael Dreeben, a heavy hitter Smith brought on board to press the top court.
By calling the filing "classic Dreeben," Weissmann says he means it is "a tour de force," and that it's "VERY geared to [Supreme Court] review."
In a second post, Weissmann says Smith "slyly notes that Trump himself previously told the [Supreme Court] in a case where he sought (unsuccessfully) immunity from a state grand jury subpoena that he [would] NOT be immune post-Presidency and [would] not be thereafter 'above the law."
Legal analyst Allison Gill also chimed in on the high court aims for the filing, noting that the "shout outs to Alito and Kavanaugh were a nice touch."
Christian Vanderbrouk, a conservative commentator who previously worked in the George W. Bush White House, also noticed the prosecutors focused on quotes from the conservative justices from the right-leaning Supreme Court.
"Jack Smith’s citations of Justices Alito, Kavanaugh and Thomas are particularly on point in this filing," he wrote on Saturday.
Conservative attorney George Conway also noticed something.
"Also: 'a president who sells nuclear secrets to a foreign adversary,'" Conway said, quoting the filing. "Interesting choice of hypotheticals." He then added, "It took quite an imagination."
