Following a slate of initial charges related to alleged mishandling of classified documents, special counsel Jack Smith handed down a superseding indictment last week with new accusations against former President Donald Trump.
One of the most recent claims involves the deletion of security camera footage in an alleged effort to destroy evidence.
Reviewing this now and there are very specific allegations here that are true or they are not, without much middle ground. For example, Trump tried to have security cam footage deleted post-grand jury subpoena, or he did not. If this is true, he’s toast. If not, everyone involved… https://t.co/xm59ypUthh
— Steve Deace (@SteveDeaceShow) July 27, 2023
Trump, who has repeatedly described his ongoing legal issues as evidence of a deep-state conspiracy to derail his 2024 presidential campaign, took aim squarely at Smith in a string of social media statements proclaiming his innocence.
“Mar-a-Lago security tapes were not deleted,” he wrote. “They were voluntarily handed over to the thugs, headed up by deranged Jack Smith. We did not even go to court to stop them from getting these tapes. I never told anybody to delete them. Prosecutorial fiction & misconduct! Election interference!”
Trump went on to denounce the “sick and evil people” behind this indictment and his previous ordeals, including the investigation into the widely debunked claims that his 2016 presidential campaign colluded with Russian operatives.
“They knowingly accuse you of a fake crime, a crime that they actually makeup, you fight these false charges hard, and they try and get you on ‘obstruction,’” he complained.
Trump brought up President “Crooked Joe” Biden’s own issues with handling classified documents in a third post.
“These guys should be prosecuted for MISCONDUCT,” he wrote. “Also, whatever happened to Crooked Joe’s Documents? Where are the ones he sent and stored in Chinatown? Is Deranged Jack going to Indict him for this and, at the same time, receiving BRIBES FROM CHINA?”
During a recent Fox News Channel appearance, attorney Alina Habba, who is representing the former president, echoed his defense.
“What was the obstruction of justice?” she asked. “Because no tapes were deleted.”
Habba asserted that Trump provided all of the requested footage, adding: “He cooperated as he always does. But they would like the American public to believe in these bogus indictments.”
She went on to declare that Trump will be vindicated upon presenting evidence in court.
“When we get to file our papers, you will see that every single video, every single surveillance tape that was requested, was turned over,” the attorney declared. “If President Trump didn’t want something turned over, I assure you, that is something that could have been done. But he never would act like that. He is the most ethical American I know.”
