Trump’s Fiery Response to Jack Smith’s Gag Order Attempt in D.C. Election Case Sparks Attention

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump launched a scathing attack on special counsel Jack Smith, labeling him as a “deranged” prosecutor after Smith’s office requested restrictions on Trump’s remarks regarding his federal election interference case.

During a speech at a conference of a conservative Christian women’s organization in Washington, D.C., Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican party’s 2024 presidential nomination, criticized Smith for attempting to impede his First Amendment rights.

In response to Smith’s motion for a partial gag order in the D.C. election case, Trump accused Smith of wanting to “silence” him and prevent him from speaking freely.

This is not the first time Trump has targeted Smith using similar rhetoric. However, his latest attack came shortly after Smith’s filing.

The D.C. election case includes four criminal counts against Trump, alleging his involvement in multiple conspiracies to overturn the 2020 election results in favor of President Joe Biden.

Smith argues that Trump’s repeated attacks on the court, prosecutors, potential witnesses, and the citizens of D.C. have the potential to undermine the integrity of the proceedings and prejudice the jury pool.

In his court filing, Smith requested a limited restriction on certain extrajudicial statements from Trump, including those that mention prospective witnesses, party members, attorneys, court personnel, and potential jurors in a disparaging or inflammatory manner.

During his speech, Trump proclaimed, “They want to silence me because I will never let them silence you,” garnering support from the crowd.

Smith’s motion references several posts from Trump’s Truth Social account, where he attacks Judge Tanya Chutkan, the prosecutors, and even the city of D.C. Additionally, it accuses Trump of spreading false accusations against a prosecutor involved in his other federal criminal case in Florida.

In response, Smith clarified that the prosecutor’s visit to the White House was part of a routine investigative interview, not for “improper reasons” as Trump claimed. Smith deemed Trump’s statement an attempt to prejudice the public and the venire before the trial.

The judge has not yet made a ruling on Smith’s request, which, if granted, could restrain Trump from denigrating the special counsel himself.

Trump’s speech at the conference was the first of two scheduled for that night. He appeared at the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington, D.C. earlier the same month, pleading not guilty in the federal election case.