Washington — Special counsel Jack Smith on Monday sought to end his bid to revive the case against President-elect Donald Trump arising from his alleged mishandling of sensitive government documents, which would bring to a close the historic and unprecedented case against the nation's 45th and 47th president. In a filing with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, Smith cited Trump's recent victory over Vice President Kamala Harris in the November presidential election and referred to longstanding Justice Department policy that forbids the prosecution of a sitting president. The district court judge presiding over Trump's case, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, had ruled earlier this year that the charges should be dismissed because Smith was unlawfully appointed. The special counsel appealed the decision, but has now asked the 11th Circuit to dismiss his appeal. In his brief filing , Smith cited a separate request to dismiss his other case involving Trump, which involves an alleged scheme to overturn the 2020 election. The special counsel said in that filing submitted to a federal judge in Washington, D.C., that after consultation with the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel, "the department's position is that the Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated." "The American people re-elected President Trump with an overwhelming mandate to make America great again. Today's decision by the DOJ ends the unconstitutional federal cases against President Trump and is a major victory for the rule of law," Steven Cheung, Trump's spokesman, said in a statement. "The American people and President Trump want an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and we look forward to uniting our country." It's likely the courts will grant each of the special counsel's requests in the two cases, marking the culmination of the monthslong prosecutions against Trump. In the documents case, dismissing the appeal as to Trump would leave in place the lower court's order tossing out the charges against him. The appeal will continue as to Trump's two co-defendants, Walt Nauta and Carlos de Oliveira, because unlike the president-elect, "no principle of temporary immunity applies to them," Smith wrote. "The special counsel's decision to proceed in this case even after dismissing it against President Trump is an unsurprising tribute to the poor judgment that led to the indictment against Mr. De Oliveira in the first place," John Irving, de Oliveira's lawyer, said in a statement. "Just because you can doesn't mean you should. If they prefer a slow acquittal, that's fine with us." A lawyer for Nauta declined to comment. Trump became the first former president to face federal charges when a grand jury returned an indictment against him in June 2023. The prosecution came months after FBI agents conducted a court-authorized search of Trump's South Florida property, Mar-a-Lago, in August 2022 and recovered more than 100 documents marked classified that he kept after his first term ended in January 2021. Following the search, Trump mounted a separate legal battle that brought the appointment of an independent arbiter to sift through the material seized by the FBI, though the 11th Circuit ordered an end to that review in late 2022. Smith was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in November of that year to take over the federal investigation into Trump's handling of sensitive government records and pursued charges against the president-elect for unlawfully retaining national defense information and attempting to obstruct the Justice Department's probe. Trump was charged alongside two employees, Nauta, an aide, and de Oliveira, the property manager as Mar-a-Lago. Trump, Nauta and de Oliveira pleaded not guilty to all charges. The president-elect claimed his prosecution was a politically motivated attempt to harm his candidacy in the race for a second term. Prosecutors used court filings to reveal information about how Trump allegedly stored records containing the nation's secrets at his resort, as well as how he, with his co-defendants, allegedly engaged in a scheme to deceive federal investigators and stymie their probe. They included photos showing boxes of material stacked on the stage in Mar-a-Lago's ballroom and in a bathroom on the property. Other images taken by the FBI during its August 2022 search show boxes of records in a storage room and in Trump's office, some of which prosecutors said contained highly sensitive information alongside personal keepsakes and other items from his presidency. Cannon initially set a trial date for May 20, 2024, but she postponed the proceedings weeks before they were set to begin. The president-elect and his lawyers attempted to have the case against him dismissed on a variety of grounds, claiming he was selectively prosecuted, he was shielded from federal charges by presidential immunity and Smith was appointed in violation of the Constitution. Trump succeeded in persuading Cannon that the special counsel's appointment and funding for his office were unlawful, and she ordered the case to be dismissed in July. But Smith appealed the decision to the 11th Circuit. Both he and Trump's lawyers submitted filings with the court presenting their views on Cannon's ruling, though the court had not yet set a date for arguments. It was expected that an eventual decision from the 11th Circuit would wind up before the Supreme Court. The documents case was one of two that Smith brought against Trump. In Washington, D.C., he faced charges related to an alleged attempt to subvert the transfer of power after the 2020 presidential election. The president-elect pleaded not guilty to the four counts he faced there, and the dispute landed before the Supreme Court as Trump argued presidential immunity shielded him from prosecution. He was also charged by local prosecutors in separate cases in Fulton County, Georgia, and New York City. The New York case stemmed from a hush-money payment made to adult film actor Stormy Daniels after the 2016 election, and a jury found Trump guilty of 34 felonies in May, making him the first former president convicted of a crime. He was set to be sentenced last month in New York, but it was delayed . The Fulton County case involved an alleged plot by Trump to overturn the results of the 2020 election in Georgia. He pleaded not guilty to charges in the sprawling racketeering case brought by District Attorney Fani Willis. Proceedings had been halted, though, while a state appeals court considered whether Willis should be disqualified from the case. It's unclear how Trump's victory will affect his prosecution in Fulton County. Trump's bid for a second term loomed over his prosecutions, as it was widely expected his federal cases would be dropped if he succeeded in winning the White House. Now, Smith has sought to bring an end to both of the historic prosecutions of the former and next president. Once both cases are settled, Smith is likely to file a final report with the attorney general, as is required by special counsel regulations, and is expected to resign from his post before Trump is sworn into office on Jan. 20, two sources familiar with Smith's plans previously told CBS News. Garland has pledged to publicly release all special counsel reports completed during his tenure — a commitment he has so far upheld — and he is likely to do so for Smith's report, too. Should the disclosure of Smith's findings stall and be delayed into the Trump administration, the odds of its release become increasingly slim as the president-elect has said he intends to nominate many of his top defense attorneys to leadership roles within the Justice Department. Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, who defended Trump in the two federal cases and in New York, are set to serve as deputy attorney general and principal associate deputy attorney general respectively, two powerful posts within the Justice Department. Trump has said he will nominate former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi for the top job as attorney general. Donald Trump Melissa Quinn is a politics reporter for CBSNews.com. She has written for outlets including the Washington Examiner, Daily Signal and Alexandria Times. Melissa covers U.S. politics, with a focus on the Supreme Court and federal courts.NEW YORK (AP) — Technology stocks pulled Wall Street to another record amid mixed trading. The S&P 500 rose 0.2% Monday after closing November at an all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 1%. Super Micro Computer, a stock that’s been on an AI-driven roller coaster, soared after saying an investigation found no evidence of misconduct by its management or the company’s board. Retailers were mixed coming off Black Friday and heading into what’s expected to be the best Cyber Monday on record. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below. NEW YORK (AP) — Technology stocks are pulling Wall Street toward another record amid mixed trading on Monday. The S&P 500 rose 0.2% in afternoon trading after closing its best month of the year at an all-time high . The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 86 points, or 0.2%, with a little more than an hour remaining in trading, while the Nasdaq composite was 0.9% higher. Super Micro Computer, a stock that’s been on an AI-driven roller coaster, soared 31.1% to lead the market. Following accusations of misconduct and the resignation of its public auditor , the maker of servers used in artificial-intelligence technology said an investigation found no evidence of misconduct by its management or by the company's board. It also said it doesn’t expect to restate its past financials and that it will find a new chief financial officer, appoint a general counsel and make other moves to strengthen its governance. Big Tech stocks also helped prop up the market. Gains of 1.8% for Microsoft and 2.9% for Meta Platforms were the two strongest forces pushing upward on the S&P 500. Intel was another propellant during the morning, but it lost an early gain to fall 1.1% after the chip company said CEO Pat Gelsinger has retired and stepped down from the board. Intel is looking for Gelsinger’s replacement, and its chair said it’s “committed to restoring investor confidence.” Intel recently lost its spot in the Dow Jones Industrial Average to Nvidia, which has skyrocketed in Wall Street's frenzy around AI. Stellantis, meanwhile, skidded following the announcement of its CEO’s departure . Carlos Tavares steps down after nearly four years in the top spot of the automaker, which owns car brands like Jeep, Citroën and Ram, amid an ongoing struggle with slumping sales and an inventory backlog at dealerships. The world’s fourth-largest automaker’s stock fell 6.3% in Milan. The majority of stocks in the S&P 500 likewise fell, including California utility PG&E. It dropped 3.7% after saying it would sell $2.4 billion of stock and preferred shares to raise cash. Retailers were mixed amid what’s expected to be the best Cyber Monday on record and coming off Black Friday . Target, which recently gave a forecast for the holiday season that left investors discouraged , fell 1.6%. Walmart , which gave a more optimistic forecast, rose 0.3%. Amazon, which looks to benefit from online sales from Cyber Monday, climbed 1.3%. The stock market largely took Donald Trump’s latest threat on tariffs in stride. The president-elect on Saturday threatened 100% tariffs against a group of developing economies if they act to undermine the U.S. dollar. Trump said he wants the group, headlined by Brazil, Russia, India and China, to promise it won’t create a new currency or otherwise try to undercut the U.S. dollar. The dollar has long been the currency of choice for global trade. Speculation has also been around a long time that other currencies could knock it off its mantle, but no contender has come close. The U.S. dollar’s value rose Monday against several other currencies, but one of its strongest moves likely had less to do with the tariff threats. The euro fell amid a political battle in Paris over the French government’s budget . The euro sank 0.7% against the U.S. dollar and broke below $1.05. In the bond market, Treasury yields gave up early gains to hold relatively steady. The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed above 4.23% during the morning before falling back to 4.19%. That was just above its level of 4.18% late Friday. A report in the morning showed the U.S. manufacturing sector contracted again last month, but not by as much as economists expected. This upcoming week will bring several big updates on the job market, including the October job openings report, weekly unemployment benefits data and the all-important November jobs report. They could steer the next moves for Federal Reserve, which recently began pulling interest rates lower to give support to the economy. Economists expect Friday's headliner report to show U.S. employers accelerated their hiring in November, coming off October's lackluster growth that was hampered by damaging hurricanes and strikes. “We now find ourselves in the middle of this Goldilocks zone, where economic health supports earnings growth while remaining weak enough to justify potential Fed rate cuts,” according to Mark Hackett, chief of investment research at Nationwide. In financial markets abroad, Chinese stocks led gains worldwide as monthly surveys showed improving conditions for manufacturing, partly driven by a surge in orders ahead of Trump’s inauguration next month. Both official and private sector surveys of factory managers showed strong new orders and export orders, possibly partly linked to efforts by importers in the U.S. to beat potential tariff hikes by Trump once he takes office. Indexes rose 0.7% in Hong Kong and 1.1% in Shanghai. AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.Juniper Networks Inc. stock underperforms Friday when compared to competitors despite daily gains
Lowry: We live in an age of whispered conversationsBUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Kino Lilly Jr.'s 21 points helped Brown defeat Canisius 83-76 on Saturday. Lilly shot 5 of 13 from the field, including 5 for 9 from 3-point range, and went 6 for 7 from the line for the Bears (3-3). Landon Lewis scored 17 points and added eight rebounds. Lyndel Erold shot 5 for 9 (3 for 6 from 3-point range) and 3 of 3 from the free-throw line to finish with 16 points. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Get updates and player profiles ahead of Friday's high school games, plus a recap Saturday with stories, photos, video Frequency: Seasonal Twice a week
One of its own peers has hit out at Labour warning it is "almost becoming the cruel party" as anger over the ‘tractor tax’ mounts . The chancellor Rachel Reeves is facing a revolt in rural England over her decision to extend inheritance tax to family farms. Thousands of farmers brought Westminster to a standstill on Tuesday when they descended on the capital to voice their opposition to the changes. Baroness Mallalieu, who joined farmers on the march, has now warned her government it is losing the trust of rural communities. And, in an echo of a phrase Theresa May once infamously used to describe the Tories - "the nasty party" - Lady Mallalieu said: "We are almost becoming the cruel party." The president of the Countryside Alliance also told The Daily Telegraph newspaper: "It has taken the Labour Party 14 years to win back the trust of the countryside after that last attack on hunting. "Since the last election we have more than 100 MPs in rural seats, but here we are making the same mistakes again." Labour under Sir Tony Blair brought in the fox hunting ban, which the Countryside Alliance opposed. The changes mean that farms valued at £1 million or more would be liable for 20 per cent inheritance tax. The Treasury claim that, with tax allowances, in reality only farms worth £3 million would be affected - just 28 per cent of family farms. But official Defra figures appear to suggest as many as 66 per cent could be hit. Lady Mallalieu said the tax changes are "not just threatening farmers in their pockets". "They are threatening their family and their home," she said. She added: "On the march, I heard there have been four suicides already among farmers and, for me, the most unpleasant side - and I don’t think the Government thought about this - is that they are saying to elderly farmers, make yourself die before March 2026 to save your family from losing their home." On Friday, Sir Keir Starmer insisted his government supported farmers but warned the money is needed to fund public services. The prime minister told BBC Bristol: "We’re for working people who need to be better off, who’ve really struggled over recent years. "We’re for everybody who wants to and needs to rely on the NHS, which is on its knees, and we’ve got to pick it up and we will and get those waiting lists down. Meanwhile, shadow farming secretary Victoria Atkins said that while wealthiest landowners would avoid the tax, family farms would have the “rug ripped out from under them”. She told GB News’ Chopper’s Political Podcast: "The wealthiest landowners will be able to find expensive lawyers to work their way around through trusts. "What is so worrying about this is that this literally rips the rug out from under the feet of farmers, who for generations have done nothing more than do the right thing, farm their land, bring their children up to understand how to run a farm, how to work with livestock, how to run an arable farm."