# DOJ/Jack Smith Investigation into Trump and Election Interference, January 6th Insurrection (Re-Indicted August 27, 2024) **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [November 23, 2022, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455 "2022-11-23T20:14:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 105
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2024, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2084 "2024-01-09T21:45:20Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > So if Congress impeached and convicted the President for the SEAL Team assassination, and later uncovered evidence of some other crime, the other crime could not be prosecuted because he wasn’t first impeached for that crime. You’ll have to start a tradition of impeaching an outgoing President “For every act undertaken during their tenure as President” just as a precaution. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2024, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2085 "2024-01-09T22:18:27Z")
As feckless and ineffectual as impeachment has been, you might as well. If the US survives with something resembling the current Presidency, I could see in the future every outgoing President being conducted out in a ceremonial impeachment. It would no longer be an attempt to indict for high crimes and misdemeanors; it simply becomes the equivalent of a retirement ceremony. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2024, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2086 "2024-01-09T23:49:10Z")
But there would be no effect if the president wasn’t also convicted by the Senate. ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2024, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2087 "2024-01-09T23:56:07Z")
That’s an effective enough first step. I mean, think of all the times the Senate has convicted an impeached president. Surely that will give Trump pause. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2024, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2088 "2024-01-10T00:15:18Z")
If Biden loses the election, he could have Trump’s Secret Service detail reassigned and replaced with agents loyal to him. Then he orders them to bring Trump to the rose garden at White House, where he shoots Trump in the face on live TV. Then he pardons the Secret Service detail, and resigns before he can be impeached and convicted. Trump’s theory of presidential immunity would give Biden the means to commit the perfect crime and escape justice. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2024, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2089 "2024-01-10T00:20:42Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Then he orders them to bring Trump to the rose garden at White House, where he shoots Trump in the face on live TV IMO, it should be the middle of Fifth Ave. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2024, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2090 "2024-01-10T00:36:31Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > But there would be no effect if the president wasn’t also convicted by the Senate. Well, yes, when we say “impeach”, it’s short hand for “Impeach and convict”. The senate would go along with this ritual, because if they failed to do it, the new President would then feel they were free to murder all the Senators for being weaklings. Keeping the President on a short leash will be important in the coming years. Those guys are _crazy._ ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2024, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2091 "2024-01-10T01:57:31Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > But there would be no effect if the president wasn’t also convicted by the Senate. Or simply resigned. > [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Then he pardons the Secret Service detail, and **resigns** before he can be impeached and convicted. (My emphasis) Bingo! ---
**Author:** ![CoolHandCox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coolhandcox/32/16233_2.png) [@CoolHandCox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoolHandCox)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2024, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2092 "2024-01-10T02:39:43Z")
Ha, Good one. I laughed at that, lol. ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2024, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2093 "2024-01-10T03:18:48Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > OK, now there is an impeachment hearing to determine whether the president should be removed for ordering a drone strike on the Democrat party convention. > > And during the hearing, there is a large squad of armed military personnel with Trump MAGA patches standing in Congress during voting “to prevent any unrest”. > > How does one suppose that vote is going to go? About as well as the English Civil War, I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2024, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2094 "2024-01-10T06:09:38Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I don’t know that it changes anything, but it wasn’t until well after I posted that, that I realized it was Jr. If Republicans have taught us anything, it’s that the crimes of a son make the father inelligible to be president. ---
**Author:** ![TeroSunbear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terosunbear/32/14748_2.png) [@TeroSunbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TeroSunbear)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2024, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2095 "2024-01-10T13:24:04Z")
The supreme court rejected the jack Smith appeal to decide on the issues. It went back down to the 3 judge court. What are the chances of Trump appeal now? There is a growing feel that Trump wants to stop the case or delay with these, but also that the thigs he is bringing up will actually be part of the case. It is fairly easy to decide if Trump had any presidential duty towards the election procedures. He does not. His DOJ had to deal with the court cases of fraud in elections. It was done. The Supreme Court is going to come on the side of state rights as far as election procedures go. But…then there is also Colorado. ---
**Author:** ![CoolHandCox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coolhandcox/32/16233_2.png) [@CoolHandCox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoolHandCox)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2024, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2096 "2024-01-10T21:30:30Z")
Just thought this Lawfare article (about 5 pages long), [Trump and Smith: Reunited at the D.C. Circuit](https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/trump-and-smith-reunited-at-the-d.c.-circuit), was helpful in knowing what happened at the hearing yesterday. It’s pretty much just a rundown of what happened without any analysis. Since the nuance and details are the point, I won’t try to summarize. ---
**Author:** ![tofor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tofor/32/13727_2.png) [@tofor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tofor)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2024, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2097 "2024-01-16T12:13:26Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > If Biden loses the election, he could have Trump’s Secret Service detail reassigned and replaced with agents loyal to him. Then he orders them to bring Trump to the rose garden at White House, where he shoots Trump in the face on live TV. Then he pardons the Secret Service detail, and resigns before he can be impeached and convicted. Both the prosecution and defense have agreed in this trial that a president does not have immunity for non-official acts. If Biden shoots Trump himself, he’s still liable to criminal prosecution because that is not part of his duties as president. Under Trump’s theory of the law, to be protected Biden has to order Seal Team Six or some other government agency to assassinate Trump, because ordering those people to do things is within his role as president. Note that I am not coming up with this argument myself. It was literally a question asked by one of the judges in the case (“If a president orders Seal Team Six to kill a political rival, then resigns before conviction in the Senate, can he be prosecuted?”) and Trump’s lawyer said, “No”. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2024, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2098 "2024-01-16T20:50:16Z")
Well then, if Trump’s political theories win out, I have strong hopes that Biden will do the right thing for America prior to the end of his term. And the teams should have some other targets as well. Because Trump’s team has all but outed what they consider a viable and justifiable scenario for their future efforts. 🤢 Note - I am not advising taking any illegal action of course. As I said “if Trump’s political theories win out” then this would be a fully legal, if morally questionable political action. And now to double down on the vomitting. 🤮 ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2024, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2099 "2024-01-16T22:48:10Z")
No, Trump’s theory is that the president’s official duties include anything that in the best interests of the country. If Biden decided that killing Trump was protecting America from a threat, that is his duty, and he is immune from prosecution for an official act of protecting America. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2024, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2100 "2024-01-16T23:05:21Z")
But but but… Killing Biden would be in the best interest of the country, but killing Our Lord and Savior Trump wouldn’t be. So Trump would be in the clear, but Biden would still be criminally liable. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2101 "2024-01-17T01:18:15Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > No, Trump’s theory is that the president’s official duties include anything that in the best interests of the country. And how long before he uses Nixon’s excuse that, just by virtue of being the president, everything he does is in the best interest of the country, therefore it’s not possible for the president to commit a crime. > Frost asked Nixon whether the president could do something illegal in certain situations such as against antiwar groups and others if he decides “it’s in the best interests of the nation or something”. Nixon replied: “Well, when the president does it, that means that it is not illegal”, by definition. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2102 "2024-01-17T03:40:00Z")
Soon. I actually included that in my original draft, but took it out because it seemed too much. Clearly not. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2024, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455/2103 "2024-01-17T06:22:11Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > . If Biden decided that killing Trump was protecting America from a threat, that is his duty, and he is immune from prosecution for an official act of protecting America. Doesn’t the oath of office say he’s supposed to defend the Constitution against ALL enemies, foreign and _domestic_? I know, it’s a stretch. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455.md?page=104) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doj-jack-smith-investigation-into-trump-and-election-interference-january-6th-insurrection-re-indicted-august-27-2024/975455.md?page=106)