One more huge US political complication explained

The federal judge presiding over the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump dismissed the case on July 15, 2024.

US District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was appointed to the bench by Trump, ruled that Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is leading the prosecution, was unlawfully appointed to his role and did not have the authority to bring the case.

Here’s how the federal government has used special counsels in high-profile investigations over the years, and how Cannon’s ruling, which Smith said he is appealing, would affect ongoing and future cases.

A brief history of independent counsels

Ensuring impartiality in the US Justice Department can be difficult, as the attorney general is appointed by – and answerable to – a partisan president. This gives presidents the power to try to influence the attorney general to pursue a political agenda.

President Richard Nixon did this during the investigation of the Watergate break-in, which threatened to implicate him in criminal acts and end his presidency.

On the evening of October 20, 1973, Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Archibald Cox, whom Richardson had appointed to lead the Watergate investigation. Richardson refused and resigned.

Nixon then ordered Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus to fire Cox. Ruckelshaus also refused and resigned. Finally, Nixon ordered Solicitor General Robert Bork, the next most senior official at the Justice Department, to fire Cox. Bork complied.

This dramatic series of events, often referred to as the Saturday Night Massacre, demonstrated how presidents could exercise political power over federal criminal investigations.

After the Watergate scandal, Congress considered legislation to make the