This is in no way surprising, but I know what you’re going to say: “THE FIX IS IN!”, “KID GLOVES!!”, “UNEQUAL JUSTICE!!!”, “TWO-TIERED!!!!”…
The New York Times
(...) Judge Goodman, tasked with hashing out a bond agreement during a one-day cameo appearance on the case, was not entirely on board. He suggested that Mr. Trump be compelled to “avoid all contact with co-defendants, victims and witnesses except through counsel.” Mr. Smith’s deputy, David Harbach, joined Mr. Trump’s lawyers in opposing that idea — but the judge imposed a version of it anyway.
(snip)
Mr. Smith’s decision not to demand any conditions at the arraignment, people familiar with the situation said, reflected a belief that prosecutors should avoid impairing Mr. Trump’s ability to campaign. He is also seeking to dodge potentially distracting elements to a case focused on concrete evidence about the former president’s handling of classified documents and efforts to obstruct government efforts to reclaim them.
(snip)
Conspicuously absent from the indictment was a potential charge that had been listed in the affidavit the Justice Department filed to obtain a search warrant for Mar-a-Lago last summer: Section 2071 of the federal criminal code, which prohibits the concealment and mishandling of sensitive government documents.
It was the only crime on the sheet that might have directly affected Mr. Trump’s 2024 presidential bid, requiring that anyone convicted of it “shall forfeit his office and be disqualified from holding any office under the United States.”
#FPOTUS also thinks Special Counsel Jack Smith is some kind of pushover...
ABC News
It was a history-making moment Tuesday when special counsel Jack Smith and former president Donald Trump appeared together for the first time in the same Miami courtroom.
Then, hours later, after Trump pleaded not guilty to federal charges, he got on stage in front of supporters at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club, and blasted the man who oversaw his indictment as a "deranged lunatic."
"He's a raging and uncontrolled Trump-hater, as is his wife," Trump said.
Smith isn’t looking for a fight, he’s working towards a conviction…
NPR
Attorney General Merrick Garland is defending his prosecutors and agents against rhetorical attacks from its most famous defendant, the former President Donald Trump.
Garland reiterated that he named a special counsel to lead the probe to ensure independence and accountability. He is standing behind special counsel Jack Smith even as the former president disparages him, accusing Smith and the Justice Department of political bias.
"Mr. Smith is a veteran career prosecutor. He has assembled a group of experienced and talented prosecutors and agents who share his commitment to integrity and the rule of law," Garland told reporters at an event focused on violent crime on Wednesday.
Bringing federal felony charges against a former president is unprecedented, but in no way political...
President Joe Biden supports keeping politics out of it…
Politico
President Joe Biden and his top aides have taken a vow of silence on the federal indictment of his predecessor, Donald Trump — and have explicitly ordered the national Democratic Party and his reelection campaign to do the same.
That directive was issued in recent days after Trump was hit with federal charges for his handling of classified documents after he left the White House, according to three people familiar with the instructions. But that decision has some Democrats and allies worried that Biden could miss a chance to underscore the seriousness of the national moment as well as deliver a political blow to his top White House rival.
(snip)
Biden to this point has been explicit: The entities that the White House controls, which includes the reelection campaign and the Democratic National Committee, are not to publicly discuss any of the criminal investigations into Trump. Those closest to the president are deeply wary of any perception that Biden is trying to influence the investigations.
The ramifications couldn’t be more dire, but I agree… This is about justice, not politics.