On Tuesday, Donald Trump announced his anticipation of being indicted by the Jan. 6 grand jury spearheaded by Special Counsel Jack Smith. This belief is rooted in a “target letter” he received from investigators on Sunday. Trump, who has already faced criminal indictment twice in recent months, made this statement on Truth Social, mentioning that such a letter generally implies an impending arrest and indictment.
He noted that the letter, a common indication that prosecutors are considering charges, invited him to present his side of the story to the grand jury meeting at the federal courthouse in Washington, D.C., later this week. It’s rare for individuals under criminal investigation to accept such invitations, and Trump has refrained from doing so in the two previous criminal cases where he was charged.
The letter indicates that Smith is seeking an indictment concerning Trump’s involvement in disrupting the peaceful transition of power on Jan. 6, 2021. While the specific charges Trump may face are still unknown, Smith’s team is contemplating potential obstruction charges tied to Trump’s actions in the days preceding and during Jan. 6, which included urging Vice President Mike Pence to hinder the certification of Joe Biden’s electoral win single-handedly.
Moreover, investigators have explored Trump’s thoughts of confiscating voting machines from the states, his consistent false allegations regarding election theft, and his role in propelling a scheme to gather fraudulent elector slates to stir up conflict ahead of Jan. 6.
The uncertainty extends to whether other personalities involved in Trump’s effort are on Smith’s radar. Investigators have interviewed many notable individuals within Trump’s sphere, including Pence, in recent months. Last year, attorneys John Eastman and Jeff Clark, two significant allies in Trump’s initiative, confiscated the phones.
As Trump anticipates battling another front to postpone a criminal trial – also emerging from charges laid by Smith – tied to his retention of national security secrets at his Mar-a-Lago estate, he disclosed the target letter. His attorneys will appear in court in Fort Pierce, Florida, on Tuesday afternoon to request a trial delay until after the 2024 election, a notion Smith’s team strongly opposes.
Trump is currently confronted with an unprecedented range of criminal charges and investigations. Apart from the two cases initiated by Smith, he is also charged in Manhattan for purportedly doctoring business records to conceal a scheme of hush money payment to a porn actress alleging an extramarital affair with him in 2016. Furthermore, a district attorney from Fulton County, Georgia, has sworn in a grand jury expected to determine if charges against Trump and his allies can be brought over attempts to undermine the 2020 election in Georgia.
