A federal judge on Monday authorized the release of former special counsel Jack Smith’s findings regarding President Donald Trump’s handling of classified materials, granting Trump 60 days to contest the decision before the report becomes public.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon maintained an order that prevented the Department of Justice from sharing a portion of the report with four congressional leaders, but noted this restriction expires on February 24. In her ruling, Cannon rejected efforts by the DOJ to compel the release of Smith’s classified documents report, which investigates allegations of Trump mishandling records.
Cannon ruled that the DOJ cannot share the report with members of Congress following Trump’s inauguration—a decision she stated was made in January. “The Department provides no valid justification for its purportedly urgent desire to release case information to Congress during an ongoing criminal proceeding,” Cannon wrote.
Cannon dismissed the classified documents case in July 2024. Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee have urged the release of the Mar-a-Lago section of Smith’s report. In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) stated there is no legal basis for withholding the report, particularly after Smith was compelled to testify before the committee behind closed doors despite his request for public testimony.
“This administration has repeatedly claimed President Trump is ‘the most transparent and accessible president in American history,’” Raskin wrote. “Your efforts to bury Mr. Smith’s report undermine that claim.” “You allow prosecutors to be questioned by Congress while denying the written record necessary for explanation,” Raskin added.
