Arizona Tribune - Trump would have been convicted if he wasn't elected: special counsel report

The US Department of Justice's "view that the Constitution prohibits the continued indictment and prosecution of a President is categorical and does not turn on the gravity of the crimes charged, the strength of the Government's proof, or the merits of the prosecution, which the Office stands fully behind," the report said.

"Indeed, but for Mr. Trump's election and imminent return to the Presidency, the (Special Counsel's) Office assessed that the admissible evidence was sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction at trial."

Trump, who returns to the White House on January 20, had been accused of conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding -- the session of Congress called to certify President Joe Biden's election win but which was violently attacked on January 6, 2021 by a mob of the Republican's supporters.

Smith, who was special counsel appointed to investigate Trump, dropped the federal criminal case against the incoming leader after he won November's presidential election.

Soon after the report's overnight release, Trump hit back on his Truth Social platform, calling Smith "deranged", and adding that he "was unable to successfully prosecute the Political Opponent of his 'boss'."

"To show you how desperate Deranged Jack Smith is, he released his Fake findings at 1:00 A.M. in the morning," Trump added in another post.

Trump's attorneys had earlier urged US Attorney General Merrick Garland not to release the report, calling the plan to release it "unlawful, undertaken in bad faith, and contrary to the public interest."

- 'Change the results' -

Smith's report details Trump's alleged efforts to persuade state-level Republican lawmakers and leaders to "change the results" of the 2020 election.

"Mr. Trump contacted state legislators and executives, pressured them with false claims of election fraud in their states, and urged them to take action to ignore the vote counts and change the results," according to the report released by the Department of Justice.

"Significantly, he made election claims only to state legislators and executives who shared his political affiliation and were his political supporters, and only in states that he had lost," it added.

In addition, the report alleges Trump and co-conspirators planned to organize individuals who would have served as his electors, if he had won the popular vote, in seven states where he lost -- Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin -- "and cause them to sign and send to Washington false certifications claiming to be the legitimate electors."

They ultimately "used the fraudulent certificates to try to obstruct the congressional certification proceeding," the report says.

The special counsel office concluded that "Trump's conduct violated several federal criminal statutes and that the admissible evidence would be sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction."

Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, dismissed a separate case against the former and future president last year -- over Trump's handling of top secret documents after leaving the White House -- but charges are still pending against two of his former co-defendants.

Smith left the justice department last week, days after submitting his final report as special counsel.

In another case, a judge sentenced Trump to an unconditional discharge on Friday for covering up hush money payments to a porn star despite the US president-elect's last-ditch efforts to avoid becoming the first felon in the White House.

L.Adams--AT