A US federal appeals court on Thursday cleared the way for the release of part of special counsel Jack Smith’s report on his investigation into President-elect Donald Trump’s alleged involvement in the 2020 election interference and the mishandling of classified records.The 11th circuit court of appeals rejected a request to block the release from Walt Nauta, a Trump associate, and Carlos de Oliveira, the former property manager at Mar-a-Lago. They face charges related to a separate investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents.The court upheld a judge’s order delaying the release for three days to allow for appeals. This ruling allows Trump to ask the Supreme Court to block the report’s release.The report concerns the alleged attempts by Trump and his allies to challenge the 2020 election results, as well as allegations regarding Trump’s possession of classified documents at his Florida residence. Smith was appointed by attorney general Merrick Garland in 2022 to investigate the case. Both Trump and his aides, Nauta and de Oliveira, have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them. Nauta and de Oliveira pleaded not guilty to federal charges accusing them of conspiring to obstruct the FBI’s investigation into classified documents discovered at Mar-a-Lago.Attorney general Merrick Garland previously expressed his intent to release the election interference portion of Smith’s report if the court allowed it. A second volume of the report, focusing on the classified documents case, will not be released while cases against co-defendants are pending.Trump’s spokesperson, Steven Cheung, responded by saying, “It is time for Joe Biden and Merrick Garland to do the right thing and put a final stop to the political weaponization of our Justice system.” He did not indicate whether Trump would appeal.Trump has often criticised Smith. In an October interview, Trump said he would “fire him within two seconds” if re-elected. Smith and his team reportedly plan to step down before Trump’s January 20 inauguration.Separately, the Supreme Court cleared the way for Trump’s sentencing in a New York hush money case on Friday.
