Jack Smith saw what Trump was trying to do with the protective order and called out the former president for attempting to try the 1/6 case in the media.
This was the first paragraph of the special counsel’s protective order response, “The central purpose of criminal discovery is to provide the defendant with materials necessary to prepare for a fair trial. To facilitate the efficient production of discovery to the defense, the Government proposed a reasonable protective order consistent with current practice in this District. The defendant instead proposed an order designed to allow him to try this case in the media rather than in the courtroom. To safeguard witness privacy and the integrity of these proceedings, the Court should enter the Government’s proposed protective order.”
Prosecutors were referring to the Trump legal team’s request to disclose to the public evidence against the former president.
NBC News’s Lisa Rubin explained:
That would theoretically allow him to reveal the names and publish the statements of those who spoke to DOJ/the Special Counsel *outside the grand jury* and/or could be cooperating. 2/
— Lisa Rubin (@lawofruby) August 7, 2023
Revealing the names of people who spoke to the special counsel/DOJ and potentially what they told the government would allow Trump to have a field day intimidating witnesses.
The Special Counsel was correct. Trump’s goal is to take this case out of the realm of the courts and make it a public political sideshow. Trump has no chance of getting the protective order that he wants. It is also unlikely that the judge will waste time with a hearing on this matter.
Jack Smith wasn’t playing any of Trump’s games and showed he was not afraid to call out the tactics and motivations of Trump and his legal team.