(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) A Saturday report from the New York Post has ignited debates surrounding the potential political influence of President Joe Biden in the prosecution of former President Donald Trump, his leading opponent for the 2024 election.
The report disclosed that high-ranking officials from the White House counsel’s office engaged in meetings with counterparts from Special Counsel Jack Smith‘s team in the weeks leading up to the DOJ charges against Trump for his alleged mishandling of classified documents.
According to the Post‘s report, “Jay Bratt, who joined the special counsel team in November 2022, shortly after it was formed, took a meeting in the White House on March 31, 2023, with Caroline Saba, deputy chief of staff for the White House counsel’s office, White House visitor logs show.”
The report outlined that Trump faced indictment by Smith’s office on June 8, 2023, a mere nine weeks after this meeting transpired.
Bratt also engaged with White House officials in November 2021, a period marked by Trump’s confrontation with the National Archives over their newly-found interest in in protecting alleged classified documents.
“Bratt had a third meeting in the White House in September 2021, this time with Katherine Reily, an advisor to the White House chief of staff’s office,” the Post added.
Critics were quick to voice concerns about the apparent political interference, particularly given the meeting’s timing against the backdrop of the 2024 presidential election and the charges against Trump.
The report also unveiled that Jay Bratt, a DOJ career employee, supported the FBI’s raid on Mar-a-Lago in August 2022.
Rudy Giuliani, former New York City Mayor and Trump’s former attorney, commented on the dubious circumstances surrounding the meeting. Giuliani argued that interactions between the DOJ and the White House should only be warranted if coordinated at the highest levels.
Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., echoed these concerns on X (formerly known as Twitter), calling for a House Judiciary investigation into potential election interference.
Election Interference
House Judiciary must investigate
Put me in, Coach. https://t.co/xim3iwLNHj
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) August 26, 2023
Responding to the allegations, Peter Carr, spokesperson for the special counsel, claimed that the visit was linked to a “case-related interview.” Carr said that the individual interviewed was a career official who had served in the White House during the Trump administration.
President Biden has consistently asserted that he did not exert influence on the DOJ’s decision to prosecute Trump. These claims directly counter a damning April 2022 report from the New York Times, which alleges that the President grew frustrated over Attorney General Merrick Garland’s perceived delay in prosecuting his primary opponent.
