Information Security Officer Will Be Appointed in Trump Election Case

Former President Donald Trump arrives at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa, on Aug. 12, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

The Justice Department (DOJ) is appointing a classified information security officer (CISO) in the case special counsel Jack Smith has brought against former President Donald Trump over his efforts to challenge the 2020 election results.

The motion was filed on Aug. 22, along with a motion to enter the agreed upon protective order. The officer was identified only in sealed orders.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan had earlier approved a limited protective order that did not restrict President Trump’s access to any records he already had access to, and could access sensitive information that was part of the case but could not publicly share the sensitive information without court authorization. She allowed the DOJ to mark several types of materials as sensitive.

Order Details

The order covers any document or information that has been classified by any executive branch agency, including that with President Trump already has or is aware of.

“Any classified information provided by the Government to the Defense is to be used solely by the Defense to prepare a defense in this case,” it reads. “The Defense may not disclose or cause to be disclosed in connection with this case any information known or reasonably believed to be classified information except as otherwise provided in this Order.”

The appointed CISO will be responsible for providing security arrangements to protect the classified information, and counsel President Trump’s team on “appropriate storage, handling, transmittal, and use of classified information.”

The CISO will also be responsible for establishing an approved secure area and procedures so that President Trump’s legal team can review discovery materials, which can contain classified information. However, they cannot disclose the information or the existence of this information.

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“The Defense shall discuss classified information only within the Secure Area or in another area authorized by the CISO and shall not discuss or attempt to discuss classified information over any telephone instrument or communication system, including through electronic mail or the Internet,” the order reads. The disclosure of this information would require the DOJ’s approval.

Gag Order Request

The original request had been much broader.

A day after President Trump pleaded not guilty to four criminal charges, he made a post on Truth Social: “If you go after me, I’m coming after you!”

His campaign followed with videos featuring the prosecutors in his cases, alleging “election interference.”

That initial Truth Social post was highlighted in Mr. Smith’s request for a protective order, asking Judge Chutkan to restrict what President Trump can say about the case.

“Such a restriction is particularly important in this case because the defendant has previously issued public statements on social media regarding witnesses, judges, attorneys, and others associated with legal matters pending against him,” Mr. Smith wrote in a filing (pdf).

He argued that potential witnesses may be intimidated by the prospect of being featured in President Trump’s social media, achieving a “harmful chilling effect,” or otherwise influencing jurors.

President Trump’s lawyers vowed to fight the request, given its high profile nature.

“The press and the American people in a campaign season have a right to know what the evidence is in this case provided that this evidence is not protected otherwise,” attorney John Lauro told CNN. “So, we’re going to oppose it.”

Second Protective Order

In a separate case Mr. Smith is prosecuting, President Trump is facing a trial in Florida over allegedly mishandling classified documents.

Given that the case centers around classified documents, the DOJ and President Trump’s legal team have been arguing over how to handle the classified information, including how much access the former president should have.

According to an Aug. 17 order by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, there will be a sealed hearing scheduled to discuss “sensitive, security-related issues concerning classified discovery.”

In July, Mr. Smith had requested a protective order under the Classified Information Protection Act (CIPA) to limit President Trump’s access to the case information, as well as what he is allowed to disclose about the case.

“Classified documents and materials, including but not limited to documents Defendant Trump was charged with illegally retaining, were collected as part of the investigation,” he wrote. “CIPA provides that the Court shall issue an order, upon the request of the United States, ’to protect against the disclosure of any classified information disclosed by the United States to any defendant in any criminal case.'”

President Trump opposed any order that would prevent discussing the case with his legal team and asked for the approval of a secure location to do so.

The DOJ and President Trump’s team then argued over the location of the authorized sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF) to be used in this case. President Trump noted that there used to be an approved SCIF at Mar-a-Lago and requested it be reinstated; Mr. Smith argued it was an “extraordinary” ask and that the former president was seeking “special treatment.”

President Trump’s team refuted the characterization that their request was “based on ‘inconvenience.’” Given the security protocol for his travel, the “hurdles and costs” would make it “virtually impossible” for the legal team to discuss the case with their client otherwise, they said.