Trump had 'no legal right' to overturn the election even if he thought he won: expert

One of the most important elements for special counsel Jack Smith to establish in order to charge former President Donald Trump in connection with the plots to overturn the 2020 presidential election, is to establish his intent — something he is attempting to do with his new interviews with Hope Hicks and Jared Kushner.

But crucially, New York University law professor and former Pentagon special counsel Ryan Goodman told a CNN panel on Thursday, that does not mean Smith has to prove Trump didn't truly believe that the election was stolen from him.

"The best possible evidence they can get — and we don't know exactly whether Jared Kushner or Hope Hicks gave them this — is Donald Trump acknowledging that he knows he lost," said former federal prosecutor Elie Honig. "It's one thing to be told by certain people that he lost, because there were other people telling him he did not lose. If you can get it out of his mouth that he knows he lost, that's golden evidence for prosecutors."

"I agree ... that intent is essential," said Goodman. "I agree with Elie that it would be super important and very valuable to the prosecutor if they could prove that Trump knew he lost." However, he added, "I don't think they need that. Even the way The New York Timesreports it, they say if the prosecutor had that information, it could bolster his case or it could make it a more robust case, that's true. But there's so many other ways this could be prosecuted and it doesn't matter."

"Trump could have thought he won the election," Goodman continued. "It doesn't give him any legal right to pressure Mike Pence to violate his oath. That would be a separate crime. It doesn't give him any legal right to have a scheme to create false slates of electors who declare they're the rightful electors and to submit to congress to gum up the works, and if the prosecutor also charges former President Trump for the violence on January 6th, it does not matter whether or not he thought he won."

"I do want to mention, Hope Hicks did give explosive testimony before the January 6th committee on that particular issue," added Goodman. "There's an open question, the prosecutors, were they also asking her about that, because she testified and there were text messages that she advised President Trump on January 4th and 5th, please stay peaceful on January 5th and he refused her advice. That's in the final report from the Select Committee."

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