Former President Donald Trump alleges that Special Counsel Jack Smith, along with various judges and appeals courts, exhibits “corruption” and “political bias.”
Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for Washington D.C. ruled against Trump, rejecting his request to prevent Smith from having unrestricted access to his Twitter feed.
Smith, whose eligibility as Special Counsel faces scrutiny from the U.S. Supreme Court in the upcoming weeks, is prosecuting two cases against the former President. The appeals court decision today is related to charges of sedition and insurrection connected to the events of January 5-6, 2021.
In his prosecution, Smith aims to utilize data from Trump’s cell phone, arguing that the former president’s involvement in the Capitol breach on January 6, 2021, makes him complicit in an attempted insurrection.
An excerpt from the appeals court ruling states, “Upon consideration of appellant’s petition for rehearing en banc, the response thereto, the amicus curiae brief filed by Electronic Frontier Foundation in support of rehearing en banc, and the absence of a request by any member of the court for a vote, it is ordered that the petition be denied.”
NEW: The DC Circuit Court DENIES a re-hearing en banc of Twitter’s appeal of Jack Smith’s search warrant of Trump’s Twitter account information. Womp womp, Elmo. pic.twitter.com/r5EAJXg8Vl
— Mueller, She Wrote (@MuellerSheWrote) January 16, 2024
Legal experts anticipate that Trump will file an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court is presently evaluating petitions concerning cases related to Trump’s immunity request, the eligibility of Special Counsel Jack Smith, and the Colorado State Supreme Court’s decision that Trump’s name should be excluded from the 2024 ballot due to an alleged violation of the 14th Amendment.
Elon Musk, CEO of X (formerly known as Twitter), had previously declined to provide Trump’s personal data to the court. However, federal government authorities compelled Musk to disclose data related to the “@realdonaldtrump” account, encompassing all tweets and interactions.
Allegedly, federal officials compelled Musk to divulge details on Trump’s searches, information on the devices used to access the account, IP addresses linked to the account, and a list of associated accounts.
Trump’s legal team contends that the federal government’s request constitutes an infringement on personal privacy and a significant overreach.
https://twitter.com/Charles01096252/status/1747335794346356832?