Ever wondered how the Department of Justice might respond to another White House bid from Donald Trump?
Well, with the former president's presumed 2024 announcement just around the corner (sources say his team is looking at Nov. 14, specifically), DOJ officials are said to be mulling whether Trump's candidacy might necessitate a special counsel "to oversee two sprawling federal investigations" related to him, CNN reports.
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In particular, appointing a special counsel might provide the department a degree of insulation from partisan rhetoric on the matter, considering the counsel would be separate from the DOJ's "normal chain of command," the Times writes. Garland could also perhaps choose a Republican lawyer to lead the effort, thereby appeasing GOP critics (at least to some degree). Still, special counsels are "hardly immune from political attacks," CNN notes.
We'll see what happens post-midterms. As one defense lawyer connected to Jan. 6 matters told CNN: "They can crank up charges on almost anybody if they wanted to."
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