Trump and Garland attack the special counsel, according to the memo

On Friday, the full effects of former President Trump’s decision to run for office again were apparent—but not in the manner he had hoped.

In order to oversee two significant investigations involving Trump, one concerning efforts to rig the 2020 presidential election and the other into the handling of private records that wound up at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed a special counsel.

Jack Smith, a seasoned prosecutor, has been chosen by Garland for the position. The ruling “will not hinder the conclusion of these investigations,” the attorney general assured.

More significantly from a political perspective, Garland made it apparent that the main influence on his decision was Trump’s participation into the 2024 presidential contest.

In a midday press conference, Garland said that it was in the public interest to appoint a special prosecutor to independently oversee an investigation and prosecution based on certain developments. He did not take questions.

These changes, he said, “included the existing president’s announced plan to run for president as well as the previous president’s statement that he is a candidate for president in the following election.”

Garland, whose 2016 Supreme Court nomination was blocked by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), is realistic enough to realize that his choice would not silence the charges made by Trump supporters that the probes are politicized witch hunts.

But he is at least seeking to maintain public respect for the Justice Department at a time when it is being criticized by a new Republican majority that will soon assume control of the House of Representatives.

Republicans on Capitol Hill have declared that they would utilize their new authority to start investigations into several topics, including what they believe to be the politicization of the Justice Department, in January.

Democrats scoff at the accusation in light of Trump’s executive actions, which included removing James Comey as FBI director and urging then-Attorney General Bill Barr to look for fictitious proof of massive election fraud in 2020.

Former U.S. attorney and deputy assistant attorney general Harry Litman said that he thought Garland had made a “nuanced legal choice” about the special prosecutor.

Since Trump became a contender, there has been a “typical conflict of interest,” according to Litman, since bringing charges against him may help the president and indirectly help Garland.

However, Litman said, “Hopefully it convinces whomever is left in the center that [the DOJ] have done all they can to make it without fear or favor.” He acknowledged that the measure had little chance of swaying the former president’s hardcore followers.

The White House steadfastly maintains that it had no input with the attorney general’s choice.

At the Friday media conference, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that Biden “was not informed” that Garland would name a special counsel.

She said, “We were not given prior notification.”

Naturally, Trump has made a full-throated entrance.

The former president called the appointment “a disgrace” and said that it was “only occurring because I am winning in every poll in both parties” in an interview with Fox Digital.

His second claim is untrue, but his first one is subjective.

In several surveys for a potential GOP primary contest in 2024, Trump has dropped behind Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R).

DeSantis may have had the most successful midterm campaign. Republican, trouncing Democratic challenger Charlie Crist to win reelection with a landslide. Trump lost some of his most well-known supporters, which raised additional concerns about whether he would hurt the GOP’s election prospects.

Under that political shadow, the timing of Trump’s 2024 campaign debut was largely seen as an effort to avoid the legal difficulties he would face.

A statement of candidacy makes it simpler to portray any actions by prosecutors as a diabolical attempt to undermine his campaign, which is what Trump is already doing.

Many of his allies support the same position.

Longtime Trump ally Michael Caputo told this column, “If anything like the [Robert] Mueller probe, the American people are in for a two-act farce.”

We learn that there is absolutely no truth to the claim that Donald Trump is being increasingly strangled. It won’t be the first time that an inquiry turns up nothing, according to Caputo.

Additionally, Trump said in a post on Truth Social that he will address “the never-ending Witch Hunt” at Mar-a-Lago later on Friday night.

Even still, the president’s problems seem to be getting worse despite his bluster. Smith has been a prosecutor since 1994, and among his impressive accomplishments is leading the hunt for potential war criminals at the special court in The Hague.

Trump is unlikely to make him nervous.

And it could not be good for the former president politically or legally.

Niall Stanage writes a news column called The Memo. Contributing was Brett Samuels.