Donald Trump no longer has to worry about the possibility of leading the nation from behind bars. On Monday, the felony charges against the Republican for his role in trying to overturn the 2020 election were dropped. Special Counsel Jack Smith threw in the towel, filing a motion to dismiss the charges related to the January 6 Capitol riots.
Smith requested that a D.C. Court grant his motion because of Trump’s victory in the 2024 elections. He cited the DOJ’s precedent against prosecuting a sitting US president, saying the case be dismissed before the president-elect’s inauguration. He argued that the DOJ and the country “have never faced the circumstance here, where a federal indictment against a private citizen has been returned by a grand jury, and a criminal prosecution is already underway when the defendant is elected President.” Per Forbes, US District Judge Tanya Chutkan granted Smith’s request, dismissing the case with no prejudice.
The special counsel also sought to strike his appeal of a Florida judge’s decision to dismiss the case against Trump for withholding classified documents. The Department of Justice indicted the Apprentice star, making him the first sitting or former president to be criminally charged.
He was charged with conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, conspiracy against rights, and conspiracy to defraud the United States in the case.
Donald Trump Reacts To Dismissed Charges: ‘Empty & Lawless!’
Following the dismissal, Donald Trump took to his Truth Socials platform to vent. “These cases, like all of the other cases I have been forced to go through, are empty and lawless,” he lamented. The soon-to-be 47th President slammed the millions of taxpayers’ money used to prosecute him.
It was a political hijacking, and a low point in the History of our Country that such a thing could have happened, and yet, I persevered, against all odds, and WON. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!
Vice President elect JD Vance also addressed the dismissal. “If Donald J. Trump had lost an election, he may very well have spent the rest of his life in prison,” he wrote. “These prosecutions were always political. Now it’s time to ensure what happened to President Trump never happens in this country again.”
Although Trump and his team are over the moon about his newfound victory, the same can’t be said of citizens online.
“The Trump era has shown with increasing clarity that billionaires will get away with anything,” one fan lamented.
“Complete and total surrender. The coup was delayed but successful; the rule of law is dead,” a second comment read.
“F*k this country. The Make America Great crowd literally killed what made America great,” a third user penned.
“A dark, tragic day for Democracy and the rule of law,” a fourth remark read.
