Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., made the suggestion on Sunday that firing any Justice Department employees who worked on cases including accusations against Trump should be one of President-elect Donald Trump’s top objectives in his new administration.
During an appearance on NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” Schmitt stated, “First and foremost, the people involved with this should be fired immediately.”
“And anybody part of this, this effort to keep President Trump off the ballot and to throw him in jail for the rest of his life because they didn’t like his politics, and who continue to cast him as a quote, unquote threat to democracy, was wrong, and so we’ll see where that goes,” Schmitt continued.
His comments coincide with special counsel Jack Smith’s plans to wind down the cases against Trump and step down before he takes office. Smith was prosecuting two cases against Trump, one pertaining to his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results and the other to his alleged improper storage of classified documents after he left office in 2021.
Smith urged U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkanto to put the case involving the president-elect’s attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election on hold a week after it was predicted that Trump would win. Shortly after the request was submitted, Chutkan granted the motion.
As a kind of “accountability,” Schmitt presented his demand that all those involved in these cases be fired. He told moderator Kristen Welker, “[The cases] all fell apart under the weight of the law.” Therefore, I do believe that accountability is necessary. Resuming the fight against crime is crucial, in my opinion, but these excesses must be held accountable.
On the campaign trail this year, Trump frequently disparaged the Justice Department and outlined their expectations for the agency should they win the presidency.
For example, Trump has frequently stated that he will pardon the more than 1,000 supporters who have been accused of crimes connected to the January 6, 2021, Capitol storming.
The president-elect also said throughout the campaign that he would target Smith and other political rivals with the Justice Department.
Trump once published a picture of Smith on TruthSocial along with the statement, “He should be prosecuted for prosecutorial misconduct and election interference.”
WHEN I WIN, Trump said in a post following a campaign rally in September, “those who cheated will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, which will include long term prison sentences.” Please be aware that corrupt election officials, lawyers, donors, political operatives, and illegal voters are all subject to this legal risk.
Schmitt said that Trump “absolutely” had his vote for former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, whom he had stated he would name as his next attorney general after his previous choice, former Representative Matt Gaetz, withdrew from consideration.
Schmitt responded, “Oh, absolutely,” when asked if he would back Bondi.
“I plan to assist Pam Bondi in obtaining the votes,” he continued. I am familiar with her. She’s a friend. I’ve grown to admire Pam Bondi. She was an excellent Florida attorney general. President Trump has hit a home run with this.
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