Donald Trump is facing a new legal threat from special counsel Jack Smith, but a former official from the Obama White House doesn't think it will hurt his chances with Republican voters.
The former president revealed he had received a target letter Sunday from the special counsel, but former White House press secretary Robert Gibbs told MSNBC's Peter Alexander that he doesn't expect Trump to face any political blowback if he's charged for his role in the Jan. 6 insurrection.
"I don't think there's any evidence that this, at least in this past, has hurt Donald Trump, as you've said, it's made him stronger," Gibbs said. "My guess is when we do polling in the next five to seven or 10 days, you're not going to see this, particularly in the Republican primary, hurts Donald Trump all that much. I think if you're Joe Biden or their campaign, you sit back and watch. I don't think there's a lot of need to put spin on the ball on this one."
"This is a challenge, obviously, for Trump and Republicans in a general election," he added. "I think watching this play out in the Republican primary is their best strategy."
Gibbs, who served under former president Barack Obama, noted the irony of Trump facing a third indictment after campaigning in 2016 on prosecuting Hillary Clinton.
"It's a little rich watching Republicans talk about the weaponization of government and the idea of throwing opponents in jail," Gibbs said. "I'm old enough to remember when the prevalent theme in the 2016 case was the chant 'lock her up.' Again, to watch all of this is just a different level of kabuki theatre."
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