Trump says if he takes office, he'll fire special counsel Jack Smith 'within 2 seconds'

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump said Thursday that if he wins the White House, he will fire special counsel Jack Smith “within two seconds” of taking office.

Trump was asked during an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt whether he would first pardon himself or terminate Smith to remove the legal cloud hanging over him. Smith, who was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2022, has charged the former president over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his mishandling of classified documents.

“It’s so easy. I would fire him within two seconds,” Trump responded. “He’ll be one of the first things addressed.”

Trump, who regularly assails Smith and has suggested before that he would fire him if he were president, called Smith a “crooked person.”