On Monday, ex-President Trump asserted that special counsel Jack Smith will face his ideal judge in Tanya Chutkan, a U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia, who oversees the case associated with Trump’s attempts to retain control post the 2020 election.
Trump has repeatedly criticized both the location of the case – Washington, D.C., and Judge Chutkan since his indictment, suggesting that these circumstances hinder a fair trial.
“Jack Smith, in his deranged state, is set to face his top choice judge, a person of his ‘dreams’ (WHO SHOULD BE RECUSED!), in a bid to strip me of my FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS,” Trump declared on Truth Social.
“Despite the fact that he, the DOJ, and his many aggressive prosecutors, are unlawfully revealing everything they can to the False News Media!!!” Trump continued.
These recent comments form part of a string of messages from Trump, the front runner for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, criticizing Chutkan.
Chutkan, an appointee of former President Obama, was randomly chosen to handle the case in D.C. A Trump appointee is managing a separate case in Florida related to Trump’s handling of classified documents.
The case under Chutkan’s jurisdiction in D.C. is also connected to the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol, which took place not far from the courthouse.
The majority of voters in D.C. supported President Biden in the 2020 election, another fact that Trump and his supporters underscore.
Trump faced four criminal charges concerning his efforts to maintain power following the 2020 election defeat. He admitted to all four charges at a hearing last week.
Chutkan, unanimously approved by the U.S. Senate, has earned a reputation for imposing severe sentences in cases related to Jan. 6.
She ruled in support of the Jan. 6 select committee investigating the Capitol attack, granting it access to crucial records that strengthened its case against Trump. Many attribute the committee’s work as instrumental in the latest indictment against Trump.
While ruling against Trump, Chutkan stated, “Presidents are not monarchs, and Plaintiff is not President.”
Over the past weekend, Trump’s allies attempted to argue that Trump couldn’t receive a fair trial in D.C.
Some of Trump’s former allies who turned critics, including ex-Attorney General Bill Barr and former New Jersey Governor and U.S. Attorney Chris Christie, dismissed this argument, expressing their confidence in the D.C. jurors.
