CNN Legal Analyst Says Jack Smith Trial Date ‘Close to Infringing’ On Trump’s Rights — Trump Lawyers Make ‘Powerful Argument’

CNN legal analyst Elie Honig said Special Counsel Jack Smith’s proposed trial date is “almost infringing” on ex-President Donald Trump’s rights, and his lawyers “make a powerful argument” against it.

Trump’s lawyers filed a motion to set April, 2026 to begin the trial on the indictment by Special Counsel Jack Smith’s grand jury for his attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election before and on January 6, 2021.

On Friday’s edition of CNN News Central, Honig expressed astonishment at the Trump request, but said Smith’s proposed January 2024 date was also out of line:

BOLDUAN: April 2026, this is the request now, Elie, from Trump’s attorneys to when they would like to see the trial on the federal elect — the 2020 election, the federal trial begin on its face. I wanted to get your take on what you think about the push to 2026. Because quite frankly, the contrast is almost comical between the request from Trump’s attorneys and the request from the special counsel asking for January of next year.

ELIE HONIG: Yes, Kate. And I think both sides are far off base in their requests. 2026 is sort of, obviously way too far out there. It’s hard to even conceive of 2026. I think that’s a vast overreach by Donald Trump’s team. But on the other side of the coin, asking for trial to start in January of 2024, as DOJ has done, is also not just unrealistic, but really gets close to infringing on Donald Trump’s right to prepare for a trial.

He’s the one who has a constitutional interest here. He’s the one who’s liberty at stake. And I think his lawyers, in their submission, make a powerful argument that we cannot even physically get through the 11 million documents that we are in the process of being given by DOJ between now and January.

And they don’t have to just sort of read through those documents. They have to analyze them they have to prepare their own defense, they have to file motions. So I think both of these dates are really out of bounds. And I think it’s going to be up to the judge to find the middle ground. Of course, the big question is will that middle ground be before or after the 2024 election.

BOLDUAN: Which is obviously critical. That is the — I think maybe that is the question, both legally and politically.

Watch the clip above CNN News Central..

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