Trump Claims He Is A 'TARGET' Of Special Counsel's Jan. 6 Probe
The former president wrote he was given "HORRIFYING NEWS" Sunday evening about another potential indictment.
Jack Smith is not playing around.
That's sort of how probes work. Not a lot to investigate without a target.
The takeaway here is that he's actually received a Target Letter, which indicates a strong belief that there is substantial evidence against him and that criminal charges are being seriously considered. It's a procedural step, and one that many people likely inferred, but it is important and shows a concrete stance on the investigation. It's worth noting that "Target" is a specifically defined legal term in this context, on relevant part:
A "target" is a person as to whom the prosecutor or the grand jury has substantial evidence linking him or her to the commission of a crime and who, in the judgment of the prosecutor, is a putative defendant....
USAM 9-11.151
The hed construction is nonetheless really weird. "Claims" is a pretty standard Trump-hed verb, but it's inappropriate here. Throwing "target" in quotes additionally serves to cast doubt on a very straightforward piece of news.
The family of the 4 people that died on Jan. 6 were also given "HORRIFYING NEWS" that day.
Well duh. When you’re the primary instigator, of course they’re going to target you.
Yes, typically the criminal who is suspected of committing the crime is the target of the investigation. That's definitely how it works, Donny. Good job.
In the same way the criminals are the "target" on investigations into their crimes, right? Like, technically true, but missing an awful lot of pertinent facts.