Former MSNBC anchor Mehdi Hasan reamed out President Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland on Saturday for not putting former President Trump on trial before the 2024 presidential election.
In a scathing post on X over the weekend, Hasan said he will never forgive Biden and Garland for allowing Trump’s trial on charges stemming from Jan. 6 to be held after Election Day – while shrugging off concerns of a weaponized justice system.
“No matter who wins or loses on Tuesday, I will never not stop being mad at Joe Biden and Merrick Garland for allowing Trump to face the electorate this week without having seen the inside of a courtroom for his crimes on, and ahead of, January 6th,” he wrote.
“Astonishing incompetence, caution, cowardice, and more from the top of the Democratic Party. They’ll say it was to try and retain faith in an impartial DOJ but, even after giving Trump a pass, the Dems and the Biden DOJ are still accused of carrying out a ‘witchhunt’ against Trump and of ‘weaponizing’ the justice system against him. So what was gained?” he added.
After months of speculation over a trial date in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s election case against Trump, US District Judge for the District of Columbia Tanya Chutkan announced in September that the trial would not begin before the presidential election, setting deadlines for replies and paperwork from federal prosecutors and Trump’s legal team for Nov. 7 — two days after Election Day.
The case pertains to Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
Democrats had hoped for an earlier trial date with the belief that it would damage Trump politically and hand Kamala Harris a massive advantage in a razor-tight race.
Trump was indicted on four federal charges stemming from Smith’s probe of the Capitol riot, including conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights in August 2023. Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges brought against him by Smith and has referred to the case as a “Witch Hunt.”
At the time, Democrats claimed the charges indicated a “months-long criminal plot led by the former president to defy democracy.”
But after The Supreme Court ruled that a president is immune from prosecution for official acts, Smith was required to file another indictment against Trump, revising the charges in an effort to navigate the Supreme Court ruling.
The new indictment kept the prior criminal charges but narrowed and reframed allegations against Trump after the high court’s ruling that gave broad immunity to former presidents.
Smith alleges Trump pressured former Vice President Mike Pence to reject legitimate electoral votes, in addition to mounting fake electors in key states that went to President Biden and to attest to Trump’s electoral victory.
The charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding and conspiracy against rights remain.
Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges in the new indictment as well.
Trump also faces criminal charges in a separate federal case led by Smith over classified documents, as well as charges in Fulton County, Georgia, and a criminal conviction on 34 counts in Manhattan criminal court.
He was also convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree in a New York courtroom in May.
Trump has maintained his innocence as Republicans in Congress vow to crack down on the alleged weaponization of the Justice Department.
