What’s different and why?

The most glaring difference between the two indictments: prosecutors removed the entire section about Trump’s attempts to weaponize the Justice Department to help his reelection.

And the new indictment no longer mentions “co-conspirator 4,” who was referenced nearly 30 times in the original case and was previously identified by CNN as Jeffrey Clark, a Trump appointee at the Justice Department who embraced his false voter-fraud theories and supported his efforts to use federal law enforcement powers to try to overturn the election.

“Smith removed the allegations about Trump’s use of the Justice Department to perpetrate the scheme since the Supreme Court made clear that those acts were official acts and therefore immune from prosecution,” said Barbara McQuade, a former prosecutor and University of Michigan Law School professor.

Special counsel Jack Smith had to take a hammer to some parts of his election subversion case against former President Donald Trump after the Supreme Court’s sweeping ruling that Trump had at least some presidential immunity in the prosecution.

But with the superseding indictment handed up by a grand jury on Wednesday, prosecutors also used a scalpel to reshape their allegations, making subtle edits, along with big changes.

Trump’s infamous Rose Garden video from January 6, 2021 – and the efforts by others leading up to it to convince to Trump he needed to tell the Capitol rioters to leave – has been removed from the indictment. Smith, however, has added new details about Congress’ certification process and what role Vice President Mike Pence was playing in it, in attempt to bolster other aspects of the case.

Shortly before Kamala Harris replaced Joe Biden as the Democratic Party’s 2024 presidential candidate, several national polls and primary voting results indicated that Donald Trump had peeled away one of the party’s most reliable voting blocs – people of color.

Such was the case with polls suggesting that Trump was expected to win more Black votes than any other GOP candidate in modern history. Other polls suggested that more Hispanic voters were supporting Trump despite his anti-immigration policies and often racist rhetoric.

Each of these apparent political shifts came at a time during the Democratic primaries when President Biden was losing the support of Arab American voters – another reliably Democratic political bloc.

Though the candidacy of Harris has excited Democratic voters across the nation, she is still not immune to the effects of Trump’s appeal to voters of color. An August 2024 Pew Research Center poll found that 77% of all Black voters supported Harris, while 13% supported Trump.

Poll question
When it comes to the 2024 election, what should be Mark Zuckerberg’s top priority?

Selection of Smerconish Daily Headlines

Read: Smith’s New Indictment of Trump, Justice.gov
Special Counsel Jack Smith submitted an updated 36-page indictment of Donald Trump with four federal criminal violations following the Supreme Court’s decision that presidents — and presumably former presidents — cannot be prosecuted for acts relating to their core duties in office.

Arlington Cemetery Altercation, NPR
Trump campaign staff allegedly verbally and physically fought an Arlington National Cemetery official during a wreath ceremony after being told they were legally not allowed to take photos or videos of the recent burial grounds.

Debating Over Debate Terms, Reuters
Donald Trump announced he has agreed to participate in a September 10 debate with Kamala Harris under rules that include muted microphones, similar to the June CNN debate, though Harris’ campaign rejected the hot mic claim and said the debate terms are still unsettled.

Trump Taps Gabbard and RFK Jr., Politico
Donald Trump has named RFK Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard to his transition team, adding them to the group that will help shape policy and personnel decisions for a potential second term.