AG Merrick Garland Says Trump Election Crimes Trial Needs To Be ‘Speedy’ In Exclusive CNN Interview

Attorney General Merrick Garland pushed a “speedy trial” for ex-President Donald Trump and defended against charges of political targeting in an exclusive interview with CNN’s Evan Perez.

Among the 91 felonies Trump faces is Special Counsel Jack Smith’s trial on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of an attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights. It’s set to begin in March — pending pretrial appeals.

Those appeals have infamously resulted in a legal theory in which his attorney argued that a president could order Seal Team Six to assassinate a political rival and not face prosecution unless he were impeached and convicted first

On Friday morning’s edition of CNN This Morning, Perez’s exclusive interview with Garland dropped, in which the AG pushes for a quick trial and pushes back when Perez asks about Trumpworld accusations of political targeting:

EVAN PEREZ: We, you know, one of the trials of the former president, Donald Trump is scheduled for March. You know, some of the polling recently showed that three-quarters of Republicans believe that he’s being targeted for political reasons. Does it concern you that, that this public perception exists? And what can you do to try to change that?

AG MERRICK GARLAND: Okay. Of course, that concerns me. What we have to do is show by the acts that we take that we’re following the law, that we’re following the facts. The prosecutions that you’re talking about were brought last year. And the special prosecutor has said from the beginning, that he thinks public interest requires a speedy trial, which I agree with.

EVAN PEREZ: You agree with that.

AG MERRICK GARLAND: I do, and, the matter is now in the hands of, a trial judge to determine when the high trials will take place.

Watch above via CNN This Morning.