During his first public remarks since the unsealing of the 49-page, 37-charge indictment against him, Donald Trump again lashed out at special counsel Jack Smith the lead prosecutor in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents probe. Speaking at the state Republican Party convention in Columbus, Georgia, the former president and current presidential candidate gave a meandering stump speech weaving in his apparent incredulity regarding the charges levied against him. As with all of his foes, political or judicial, Mr Trump has already veered into personal attacks against the individuals concerned on his social media platform Truth Social but relished his first opportunity to talk to a large, enraptured crowd of followers. After calling the indictment a “political hit job” and claiming “Republicans are treated far differently at the Justice Department than Democrats”, Mr Trump pondered whether Mr Smith had changed his name. “You know I’m talking about Jack Smith. What do you think his name used to be? I don’t know … Sounds so innocent. He’s deranged.” The former president didn’t stop there. He continued: “Deranged Jack Smith and I watched him yesterday go up and talk. He talked for about two and a half minutes. He was shaking. He was so scared. He didn’t want to be there. Because ultimately, these are cowards. They’re cowards.” He added: “And he’s a big Trump hater, openly he’s a Trump hater. And his wife is even more of a Trump hater. I wish her a lot of luck. But he’s a bad Trump hater and she’s a Trump hater.” Mr Trump returned to the topic of his indictments a couple of times during the speech which went on for much longer than expected as he revelled in the applause from the crowd, who booed and jeered at the mention of his political opponents. The federal indictment against the former president outlines 37 counts related to retaining classified information, willfully retaining national defence information, conspiracy to obstruct justice, and more. The indictment was unsealed on Friday afternoon (9 June), revealing the Department of Justice’s findings after a nearly year-long investigation into Mr Trump retaining classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. Last August, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) seized boxes of documents from Mr Trump’s home, some of which included top-secret records detailing a foreign nation’s nuclear capabilities. As the former president raged against the indictment online on Friday, Mr Smith gave a televised speech from the Justice Department — as referenced by Mr Trump in Saturday’s remarks. Mr Smith stressed that laws intended to “protect national defence information are critical to the safety and security of the United States. And they must be enforced.” “Violations of those laws put our country at risk. Adherence to the rule of law is a bedrock principle of the Department of Justice and our nation’s commitment to the rule of law sets an example for the world,” he added. “We have one set of laws in this country and they apply to everyone.” Read More Trump kept classified documents from seven agencies including CIA, DoD, and NSA Trump lashes out at ‘deranged lunatic’ and ‘psycho’ Jack Smith as startling secret papers charges revealed Pence won’t say whether he’s read Trump indictment after calling for its release Trump indictment: Ex-president kept nuclear and military papers and showed some to unauthorised people A timeline of events leading to Donald Trump's indictment in the classified documents case

EAST ALTON, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 6, 2023--

In her social media post on Saturday, December 2, the 'A Simple Favor' star referenced Beyonce and her good friend Taylor Swift

Google, Facebook, TikTok and other Big Tech companies operating in Europe are facing one of the most far-reaching efforts to clean up what people encounter online

Authorities are maintaining an exclusion zone around an air force base in central Greece where wildfires triggering powerful explosions at an ammunition depot

Roger Denig, 21, faces one count of first-degree murder in the tragic case involving the death of his two-month-old daughter, Ammarie

In a reel posted by the official LSU gymnastics page, team members revealed their favorite Thanksgiving dishes, and Olivia Dunne's choice stood out

Unbeaten Arsenal plays at Chelsea in the Premier League and defending champion Manchester City hosts Brighton on Saturday

Max Verstappen savoured a "special" home win in a chaotic, deluge-hit and red-flagged Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday to match Sebastian Vettel's record...

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA reported earnings that beat estimates and said it would buy back as much

'i lip read that when watching and thought that was just so adorable omg,' one fan gushed

Former President Donald Trump and other top Republicans are issuing increasingly urgent calls for the U.S. to seal its borders against a potential mass exodus of Palestinians fleeing war in the Gaza Strip