Former President Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday that he received a letter notifying that “I am a TARGET” of special counsel Jack Smith‘s grand jury investigation.
The letter sent to him on Sunday night gives him four days to report to the grand jury that has been weighing charges against the former president related to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and the 2020 election.
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“Deranged Jack Smith, the prosecutor with Joe Biden’s DOJ, sent a letter (again, it was Sunday night!) stating that I am a TARGET of the January 6th Grand Jury investigation,” Trump posted Tuesday morning, adding the time frame given to him “almost always means an Arrest and indictment” is forthcoming.
It is not clear what the charges would be and whether anyone else has received a similar letter. An attorney for the former president declined to comment to the Washington Examiner.
Trump’s statement follows a similar pattern of him dangling his arrest to the public before the government brings forth charges, as he similarly did ahead of his indictment in New York on 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection to an alleged cover-up scheme to hide an affair with porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of his 2016 campaign run. Trump has pleaded not guilty in this case.
But the former president got the date wrong on his then-looming indictment in the Empire State. Nevertheless, his arraignment did manifest on April 4, prompting Trump to travel to the Manhattan criminal court amid a crowd of protesters and supporters standing across the street before his arrival.
Smith, appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in November, has led a multiprong investigation for almost eight months. Smith secured an indictment before a Florida grand jury last month, charging Trump on 37 counts in connection to his handling of classified records and alleged efforts to obstruct that investigation.
Legal experts have speculated, citing various parts of the Justice Department‘s investigation, that Trump could face charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States after designating fake electoral certificates that were submitted to Congress ahead of the certification of Biden’s victory.
Prosecutors in recent weeks have called in a number of Trump allies before the grand jury investigating the circumstances around the riot, including Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, as well as former aide Hope Hicks. Smith’s team reportedly questioned whether Trump knew he had lost the election, presumably to weigh whether there was intent behind any possible forthcoming charges.
An indictment of Trump, who is leading the polls for the Republican 2024 presidential nomination, would mark the third time this year Trump would face federal charges.
Trump was indicted in Manhattan in April and in June when he pleaded not guilty to federal charges over his handling of classified documents after leaving the Oval Office.
Meanwhile, another possible indictment is looming in Georgia related to Trump and his allies’ alleged efforts to subvert the election results in the state.
While numerous legal efforts have pointed to Trump’s third presidential bid as a sign he could eventually ward off federal charges if he wins back the Oval Office, state-level charges such as the ones in New York and possibly in the Peach State are not pardonable.
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On Monday, the Georgia Supreme Court unanimously rejected Trump’s bid to quash a grand jury report that recommends people be indicted in the investigation tied to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. A similar request has been pending before Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney, the supervising judge of the special grand jury in that investigation.
The Washington Examiner contacted the office of the special counsel for response.
