Donald Trump Blasts Jack Smith For 'Attacking' Aileen Cannon

Former President Donald Trump blasted Department of Justice (DOJ) special counsel Jack Smith on Thursday, calling him out for "attacking" Florida U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon.

"Deranged 'Special' Counsel Jack Smith, who has a long record of failure as a prosecutor, including a unanimous decision against him in the U.S. Supreme Court, should be sanctioned or censured for the way he is attacking a highly respected Judge, Aileen Cannon, who is presiding over his FAKE Documents Hoax case in Florida," the former president wrote in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.

Cannon, a Trump appointee, has faced mounting scrutiny over her handling of Trump's classified documents case as critics have called for her to be removed. Federal prosecutors charged Trump with 31 counts for allegedly keeping classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican nominee for president, has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has repeatedly maintained his innocence in that case as well as other criminal and civil matters.

In a court filing on Tuesday, Smith said that Cannon's proposed jury instructions "rest on an unstated and fundamentally flawed legal premise." Smith continued, saying "the question of whether the PRA [Presidential Records Act] has an impact on the element of unauthorized possession under Section 793(e) does not turn on any evidentiary issue, and it cannot be deferred. It is purely a question of law that must be decided promptly."

"If the Court were to defer a decision on that fundamental legal question it would inject substantial delay into the trial and, worse, prevent the Government from seeking review before jeopardy attaches." Smith continued.

Dave Aronberg, Palm Beach State Attorney, told Newsweek on Wednesday that this is the "most aggressive" response from Smith we have seen to date, "and for good reason."

Trump continued his post, targeting political rivals Hillary Clinton and President Joe Biden for their treatment of the mishandling of classified documents.

"He is a lowlife who is nasty, rude, and condescending, and obviously trying to 'play the ref.' He shouldn't even be allowed to participate in this sham case, where I, unlike Crooked Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, and all the rest, come under the Presidential Records Act. I DID NOTHING WRONG, BUT BIDEN DID, AND THEY LET HIM OFF SCOT-FREE. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN, JACK? A TWO TIERED SYSTEM OF JUSTICE. ELECTION INTERFERENCE!"

Biden was not criminally charged after special counsel Robert Hur said in a report in February that Biden "willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen." Hur also concluded that there were differences in Biden and Trump's handling of the materials.

Meanwhile, Alan Dershowitz, Emeritus professor of law, at Harvard Law School, told Newsweek on Thursday, "Trump is fighting in the court of public opinion because he understands that these cases are political."

Former U.S. attorney Barbara McQuade also told Newsweek via email on Thursday, "Jack Smith is excluded from the gag order in this case, so Trump is free to criticize him. The post, of course, mischaracterizes Smith's brief, which appropriately argues the legal issues and does not 'go after' the judge."

"But Trump knows that very few people actually read Smith's brief, and so they will believe Trump's false claim that Smith is attacking the judge, undermining public confidence in Smith," McQuade continued.

Newsweek has reached out to Trump's campaign via email for comment.

Notably, the former president is also facing numerous other legal battles, and his criminal trial related allegations he illegally falsified business records to conceal a "hush money" payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels is set for April 15 in New York.