Former U.S. attorney Preet Bharara said Sunday that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is likely heading towards filing charges against former President Donald Trump.
Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Bharara told host Chuck Todd that he had sources who led him to believe that charges will “happen in a month.”
The DOJ is "on a path to charge" Trump, former U.S. attorney Preet Bharara said Sunday.
"When you're charging somebody in maybe the highest-stakes trial, in some ways, in history … you've got to have all your ducks in a row."https://t.co/7kMDmQvmsw
— Axios (@axios) December 12, 2022
The former prosecutor for the Southern District of New York related that he knew two attorneys “closely” who were brought on by the DOJ. These lawyers were to assist in determining if a case could be brought against the former president in court.
Bharara described the team of legal investigators tasked with investigating the Republican former president as “very seasoned.”
What he was told was that there is a “serious possibility” that the DOJ is about to level charges against Trump. Bharara added that he does not believe the team would have left their positions in both government and private practice were there not a serious possibility of charges.
Trump, who is the constant target of liberal prosecutors at state and even local levels, is the focus of two current investigations from President Joe Biden’s DOJ.
One is focused on his actions leading up to the Jan. 6 Capitol incident, while the other alleges he mishandled classified documents at his Florida estate.
Bharara told “Meet the Press” that the government does not generally move forward with charging cases “unless you have a great likelihood of success.”
Attorney General Merrick Garland last month appointed special counsel Jack Smith to oversee the DOJ inquiries into Jan. 6 and the classified documents.
Since that point, multiple subpoenas have been sent to state and local officials. These demand communications with Trump and his team concerning the 2020 presidential election.
Interestingly, Todd asked Bharara about the Jan. 6 House Select Committee and its efforts against the former president. The former prosecutor admitted that the committee and any possible referral “doesn’t do anything for the DOJ” and that it is “largely symbolic.”
The committee, as is well known, has no power to indict Trump. The hearings always were about making a show to the public. The same cannot be said for Biden’s DOJ, which may be inching closer to a criminal indictment of the announced 2024 presidential candidate.
