Special counsel Jack Smith filed a motion Sunday asking to respond to "demands" filed Friday by former President Donald Trump's lawyers to have a fully televised trial, since Smith's previous filing on the matter was based on their saying they had "no position."
Smith filed the two-page motion for leave to file reply Sunday.
"The government sought the defendant's position on the applications, and his counsel requested that the government represent to the Court that he took no position," Smith wrote. "The government accurately reported that to the Court. On Nov. 10, however, the defendant reversed course and filed a response in support of the applications."
According to Smith's filing, the Trump team attacked the prosecution for objecting to the media's request for cameras.
"The defendant's response did not engage with the relevant Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure or cite any applicable caselaw, and instead made false and incendiary claims about the administration of his criminal case, United States v. Trump, No. 23-cr-257 (TSC)," Smith's filing read. "The government requests an opportunity to respond to the defendant's claims and is prepared to file its proposed reply, which is four pages, immediately upon receiving leave from the court."
NBC is leading a media coalition seeking permission to broadcast with cameras in the courtroom, asking to forgo federal court restrictions against them because of the unique nature of a case, as it is the first time in American history that a former president will stand trial.
Smith's filing further states, "The Government sought the positions of the applicants and the defendant on this motion for leave to file. The defendant objects. NBC Universal Media, LLC, does not object. The Media Coalition wants the opportunity to address any issues raised by the Government's reply in its reply that is currently due on November 17, and accordingly does not object as long as the Government files its reply by November 14."
Trump is pushing for cameras as the media requested, denouncing President Joe Biden's Justice Department's steadfast rejection of a televised trial as an effort to "continue this travesty in darkness."
"President Trump absolutely agrees, and in fact demands, that these proceedings should be fully televised so that the American public can see firsthand that this case, just like others, is nothing more than a dreamt-up unconstitutional charade that should never be allowed to happen again," Trump's lawyers wrote in Friday's filing.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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