United States: an independent prosecutor appointed to investigate Donald Trump

The American billionaire reacted on Friday, denouncing a “political” and “unfair” appointment.

Donald Trump, in Palm Beach (Florida), November 15, 2022. (AFP)

US Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Friday, November 18 in a televised address the appointment of an independent prosecutor, Jack Smith, to investigate Donald Trump. The billionaire, who formalized his candidacy for the 2024 presidential election on Tuesday, was quick to react. He denounced, shortly after this announcement, on the Fox News channel, a “political” and “unfair” appointment, “the worst politicization of justice” in American history. The former American president also clarified that he would not participate in the investigations.

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“Given recent developments, including the former president’s announcement of his candidacy for the next presidential election and the current president’s intention to stand as a candidate, I have concluded that it is in the interest of the public that I appoint a special prosecutor”, declared the Minister of Justice. For his part, prosecutor Jack Smith immediately promised, in a press release, to act “quickly”, “in complete independence” and “thoroughly”.

Jack Smith immediately takes the lead in two investigations targeting Donald Trump. The first concerns the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, following the results of the 2020 presidential election. The second concerns the management by the ex-president of confidential documents supposed to be archived.