Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigations into former President Donald Trump have cost taxpayers over $9 million while the Justice Department’s probe into President Joe Biden’s classified documents case has cost $1.2 million thus far.
Smith’s expenditure statement shows that the special counsel has spent more than $5.4 million on compensations and benefits for personnel, travel, rent, supplies, printing and contractual services in the Trump probes.
Appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland last November, Smith has been leading the probes into Trump’s handling of sensitive national security documents and his alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
The disclosed figures include expenditures by the special counsels involved and costs accrued by other agencies within the Justice Department in connection with the investigations until the end of March, the Department Of Justice (DOJ) report revealed.
Other agencies in DOJ have incurred expenses totaling $3.8 million while assisting Smith with his investigations into Trump, including providing investigative support analysts and security detail for the special counsel when warranted, the report stated.
The DOJ report indicated that, in comparison, the special counsel assigned in January to investigate Biden’s classified documents scandal incurred expenses of only $615,000 by the end of March. Additionally, other DOJ agencies accumulated approximately $572,000 in supplementary costs to support Special Counsel Robert Hur’s investigation into Biden, resulting in around $1.2 million in taxpayer funds allocated to the probe.
A separate expenditure statement by Special Counsel John Durham showed that his investigation into the FBI’s handling of debunked allegations that the Trump campaign had colluded with Russia in the 2016 election cost taxpayers about $1.1 million in the six months preceding March 31. During the concluding months of his investigation, Durham accrued only $59,174 in additional expenses from other DOJ agencies.
However, Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who was tasked with investigating the allegations of Russian collusion involving Trump, expended approximately $31.5 million throughout his two-year probe, the DOJ report said.
Trump is currently the front running in the GOP for the race to the White House as he is facing both investigation from Smith in the mishandling of classified documents and January 6.
The former president was indicted by Smith as the report was made public of evidence of the mishandling of classified documents and audio recording happening both in Mar-a-Lago and Bedminister, both at Trump’s properties.
This will be the first time a presidential candidate had faced legal peril in an election cycle.
Produced in association with Benzinga
Edited by Alberto Arellano and Joseph Hammond
