The brand new particular counsel is an enormous downside for Trump

The new Trump special counsel is not starting from scratch. He is joining an ongoing investigation and, most importantly, has the power to impeach Trump.

Andreas Weissman tweeted:

The new Special Counsel, unlike Special Counsel Mueller, will be able to indict Trump as he is no longer POTUS and will NOT have to worry about being fired overnight for sitting POTUS. And he inherits a large body of evidence and a team that is already in place.

— Andrew Weissmann 🌻 (@AWeissmann_) November 19, 2022

There’s a big misconception that the Jack Smith investigation won’t pan out like Mueller because it will last years and won’t result in an indictment, but Attorney General Garland made it clear at his Friday news conference that he expects Smith to be involved in the investigation The investigation will not cause any delay as prosecutors already have a team and have been collecting evidence for months.

Most importantly, Smith doesn’t have to worry about being fired and he has one thing Robert Mueller never had. Jack Smith has the power to impeach Donald Trump.

Trump is now a private citizen who cannot hide behind the presidency.

The fact that Republicans are freaking out and already threatening to shut down the government over the naming of the special counsel underscores what a problem this development is for Trump and the GOP.

Jack Smith is not the same as Robert Mueller. The situations are wildly different, and most of the complaints from the left about the appointment of the special counsel have more to do with the fact that they already wanted Trump to be indicted than with the reality of what an indictment means to Donald Trump’s vulnerable future .

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House press pool and congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a bachelor’s degree in political science. His thesis focused on public policy with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and professional memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and the American Political Science Association