WASHINGTON — A motion to extend an injunction prohibiting the Justice Department from making public a volume of a report that former special counsel Jack Smith produced regarding President-elect Donald Trump’s attempts to reverse his 2020 election defeat was refused by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon on Monday.
Barring further legal action from Trump or his administration, the decision means that the Justice Department could make the section of the Smith report that addresses Trump’s attempts to reverse his 2020 election defeat public as early as midnight. Cannon maintained a ban on the release of the section of the report that dealt with the case of the classified documents, which the Justice Department stated it had no plans to release at this time.
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has not yet ruled on a move filed by the Justice Department to release the portion of the report pertaining to the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, immediately.
Trump’s attorneys made a last-ditch request to Cannon after her decision on Monday, requesting that she stop the publication of Smith’s full report.
Smith quit.Attorney General Merrick Garland assured Congress on Friday that he will make the report’s volume on Trump’s 2020 initiatives public as soon as he is permitted to do so. Due to the ongoing allegations against two co-defendants, the bulk of the report that addresses Trump’s handling of secret documents will not be made public.
Days before Trump takes the oath of office, the much anticipated report on his attempts to tamper with the election in the run-up to the Jan. 6 attack is anticipated to be released.
Trump was charged with four federal felonies related to his efforts to rescind his election defeat; however, the prosecution was halted by delay tactics and was eventually withdrawn following Trump’s victory in the 2024 election. All wrongdoing has been denied by Trump.
Regarding the parts of the report that deals with sensitive documents, Cannon stated that she would hold a hearing on Friday to determine whether or not certain members of Congress might be given access to it.
Trump’s lawyers requested in Monday night’s petition that Cannon prolong her interim ban on the entire report through Friday’s hearing. After that, they would be able to attend the hearing and make arguments in favor of a permanent block on the report.