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A newly released House interview with a White House valet who was near former President Donald Trump on Jan. 6, 2021, shows special counsel Jack Smith has an excellent witness to bring to trial, a former prosecutor said Thursday.
Andrew Weissmann appeared on MSNBC to discuss breaking news that a valet told the select committee investigating the U.S. Capitol attacks that he saw Trump threaten Vice President Mike Pence with political ruin and commonly tore up documents and threw them on the floor.
Weissmann put himself in Smith's shoes to explain his response.
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"You're looking for vignettes that bring to life themes and that you're trying to give to the jury," Weissmann said. "What you think of is, 'you have a wonderful witness at trial.'"
Smith is currently pursuing two federal cases against Trump on election interference charges in Washington D.C. and willful retention of national defense information in Florida.
In both cases, Trump has pleaded not guilty, raised the specter of a political witch hunt, and pursued delay campaigns that include sending presidential immunity defense arguments to the Supreme Court.
Weissmann warned Thursday that tactic may work as Trump would have the power to kill the cases against him should he win the presidential election in November.
"Unfortunately, because of the Supreme Court's sort of lackadaisical schedule, this may never actually see the light of day before the election," Weissmann said. "If Donald Trump were to be re-elected, then it's never going to see the light of day."
That's why Weissmann celebrated the release of the transcript, which he hopes will have an impact on voters even if it never is presented to a jury.
Specifically, Weissmann urged those who read the transcript to note Trump's response to the news that rioter Ashli Babbitt had been fatally shot as violence mounted at the Capitol.
"I think the most chilling thing in this transcript is the idea that someone is coming to the President of the United States in an insurrection that he has fomented saying somebody has actually been killed," Weissmann said. "You have actually somebody dying and there's no reaction."
According to the transcript, the valet testified he did not recall Babbitt's shooting having an impact on Trump because the focus in the room was social media.
"At that point, everyone was sending out tweets," the valet said. "It was just, he was still probably the biggest person that still hasn't sent out a tweet. I think that's what they were trying to get at. I don't know if the shooting of Ashli Babbitt was the motivator to finally send out the tweet. I can't put that together."
Weissmann found this moment deeply disturbing.
"I think that tells you everything about ... the psychological makeup of somebody who has no ability to empathize with a human tragedy," he said. "Even if he weren't the person who is ultimately responsible for setting in motion those, that activity, you would have a normal, human response."
"This person should not be in public service ever again."
English (US)