Special counsel Jack Smith slammed comparisons between former President Donald Trump’s mishandling of classified documents and President Joe Biden’s problems.
In a court filing written by assistant special counsel David Harbach, Smith said the actions of the two presidents are not even “remotely similar.”
“The defendants have not identified anyone who has engaged in a remotely similar suite of willful and deceitful criminal conduct and not been prosecuted. Nor could they,” the filing read.
“Most notably, Trump, unlike Biden, is alleged to have engaged in extensive and repeated efforts to obstruct justice and thwart the return of documents bearing classification markings. And the evidence concerning the two men’s intent — whether they knowingly possessed and willfully retained such documents — is also starkly different,” it added, citing special counsel Robert Hur’s conclusions in his final report.
This was the first time Smith referred to Hur’s report since the special counsel investigating Biden revealed his conclusions earlier this month. Hur declined to recommend any charges against Biden and blamed the mishandling on his “poor memory,” a conclusion that drew a strong rebuke from Biden’s team.
Smith’s team also dismissed accusations of political bias or any cooperation with Biden, deriding them as a “conspiracy theory.”
The filing also broadened the scope by claiming that Trump’s actions were unparalleled in history.
“There has never been a case in American history in which a former official has engaged in conduct remotely similar to Trump’s,” he wrote.
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Smith has maintained that Trump’s mishandling of documents is much different from Biden’s due to intent and cooperation with investigators. He has argued that Trump misled investigators and his own lawyers and sought to retain classified documents in his possession even after being informed of wrongdoing.
Trump, as with his other cases, claims Smith is working on behalf of Biden to harm his chief rival. The former president has gone after the special counsel innumerable times in public and on social media.
