Lawyers for President-elect Donald Trump and his allies launched a legal push this week to block the release of special counsel Jack Smith’s final report on his secret documents and investigation into election interference. A temporary injunction temporarily blocked the report’s release.

While Smith has already made many of his findings public — through four indictments and a lengthy file laying out the evidence against Trump — recent disclosures from lawyers for Trump and his co-defendants suggest that the special counsel’s final report may contain previously undisclosed details are potentially harmful to the elected president.

According to a court filing from Trump’s defense attorneys on Monday, a draft of the report alleges that Trump “undertook an unprecedented criminal effort,” violated multiple federal laws and served as the “mastermind” of multiple criminal conspiracies.

Trump’s lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, who reviewed a draft of the report over the weekend, argued in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland on Monday that the release of the report was a “partisan weapon” and a “lawless political ploy” that led to it The idea was to “politically harm” President-elect Trump and his allies.

According to Trump’s lawyers, a draft of the report contained several “baseless attacks” on members of Trump’s incoming presidential administration that “could prejudice upcoming confirmation hearings.”

The letter did not provide further information about which of Trump’s nominees or appointees were mentioned in the report.

Trump pleaded not guilty in 2023 to charges that he improperly retained classified materials after leaving the White House, and in another case, he pleaded not guilty to charges that he carried out a “criminal plan” to undermine the results of the to overturn the 2020 election. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the secret documents case last July after finding Smith’s appointment unconstitutional, prompting Smith to appeal that decision.

Smith, who is now dropping both cases against the president-elect because of the Justice Department’s long-standing ban on prosecuting a sitting president, has not provided details about the contents of his report. Smith’s team has accused Trump’s lawyers of violating a confidentiality agreement by publishing parts of their findings in their files.

Special prosecutors are required by internal Justice Department rules to prepare confidential reports summarizing their findings after they complete their investigations, and the attorney general can decide whether to release the report publicly. Smith’s report spans two volumes and covers his investigation into Trump’s alleged retention of classified documents and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Trump’s lawyers argued that the release of the report would disrupt the president’s ongoing transition process and “increase the stigmatization and public disapproval of the chief executive,” suggesting that the report – which is prepared by a prosecutor independent of the president – is similar to the report Biden administration contradicts vow to “facilitate an orderly and collegial transition process.”

“It will be a fake report, just like it was a fake investigation,” Trump said Tuesday at a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

Trump’s lawyers also suggested that the report contained a “pathetically transparent tirade” about social media platform X’s efforts to “protect civil liberties.”

ABC News previously reported that X – then known as Twitter – was found in contempt and fined $350,000 for failing to comply with a search warrant for records and data from former President Trump’s social media account. Elon Musk, the owner of

Blanche and Bove – both chosen by Trump for top Justice Department posts in the new administration – have argued that releasing the report would only offer a one-sided view of the case and trigger “a media storm of false and false statements” that would create “unfair criticism.” Trump would have to deal with during the transition period.

While Trump is no longer being prosecuted by Smith, his two former co-defendants in the secret documents case have argued that they could not receive a fair trial if the findings were made public. Lawyers for Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira have contended that the report would reveal sensitive grand jury material – such as communications obtained through a subpoena – and would support the finding that “everyone charged with Smith is guilty of the crimes charged.”

Lawyers for Trump’s co-defendants called Smith a “rogue actor with a personal and political vendetta” and argued in a filing that the report would irreparably distort the public by reinforcing the government’s “narrative” without giving Trump and his co-defendants the opportunity to give answers.

“Smith’s proposed final report – now that he is freed from the due process requirements that have limited him as a government actor – would provoke the very prejudice, passion and excitement and be an exercise of the tyrannical power for which our court system is designed.” isolate,” the filing states.

In a brief filing Tuesday, a lawyer for Smith’s staff confirmed that the special counsel’s office was “working to finalize” his report and said Garland would have the final say on what material would be released.