Jack Smith Has a History of Indicting Presidents

[ShazzieB]

22. That's not a worry of mine.

Take a look at what Garland said when he announced the appointment of Smith as special counsel. Here's a brief excerpt:

"Today, I signed an order appointing Jack Smith to serve as special counsel. The order authorizes him to continue the ongoing investigation into both of the matters that I have just described and to prosecute any federal crimes that may arise from those investigations."

Later, he added the following: "As special counsel, he will exercise independent prosecutorial judgment to decide whether charges should be brought."

The full text of Garland's statement is available in multiple sources. I'm quoting from this source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/11/18/transcript-merrick-garland-jack-smith-special-prosecutor/10728962002/

It sounds to me like Smith has been given a great deal of independence, including the authority to prosecute as he sees fit. Nowhere does Garland say Smith won't be able to prosecute someone without Garland's approval, and saying he will "exercise independent prosecutorial judgment to decide whether charges should be brought" indicates the opposite to me.

I have a hard time imaging why Garland would go to the trouble of appointing such a uniquely qualified person to do this job and make such a point of emphasizing the special prosecutorial authority he's been given, if he did not intend to allow Smith to fully exercise that authority.