Former White House counsel John Dean said that Special Counsel Jack Smith is showing that he will have a low tolerance for Donald Trump’s games.
Transcript of Dean speaking with CNN’s Jim Acosta:
ACOSTA: And Trump has been accustomed to saying and blasting out on social media whatever he wants. For example, it will be wild on January 6th. We all remember that one. Is this a message from the special counsel that that is not going to be tolerated or that he is going to ride Trump pretty hard on these social media posts from here on forward?
I mean, after all, John, Trump is doing this one day after he was arraigned in Washington, in federal court, on arguably the most serious charges he has ever faced.
DEAN: This is a serious case. It’s probably the most serious case that the federal judicial system has handled in centuries, if you will. So, uh, his playing fast and loose is not smart. It could actually be to his benefit for the special counsel to ride on him, and I think that’s what this indicates, that he’s going to have a low tolerance for games, and this is a signal. We’ll see how the judge reacts to it and, you know, she may or may not do anything at this point.
I think that most important is to get the discovery material in the hands of Trump’s defense counsel so they don’t have any way to stall a trial. It appears that there have been an exchange of drafts and they couldn’t agree upon anything, so they’re going right to the court to get that resolved.
Video:
8.4.23 11:10 PM ET True Intelligence on Display as Jim Acosta @Acosta hosts John Dean @JohnWDean and speak about Trump’s “IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I’M COMING AFTER YOU!” threat. 10/10 Conversation FULL SEGMENT ( 7:09 ) pic.twitter.com/ZkDcP7ZuTw
— Jeff Storobinsky (@jeffstorobinsky) August 5, 2023
Jack Smith sent a clear message to the former president when he reported Trump’s threat to the court. The message was that Donald Trump would have to adhere to the conditions of his release. He will be treated like any other defendant and will not be allowed to do whatever he wants and run wild.
Dean’s point about placing restrictions on Trump is a good one. The DOJ is going to want the judge to establish safeguards to keep sensitive information out of Donald Trump’s hands.
The campaign showed its fear of both Smith and the judge as they tried to walk back Trump’s threat on Saturday morning. Trump himself could be so deluded and entitled that he doesn’t see the jeopardy in which he is placing himself, but some people around him do, as Jack Smith has sent the message that Donald Trump’s games will not be tolerated.
