NBC reports:

The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s federal election interference case has granted a request from special counsel Jack Smith to hit pause on the process and give him a month to formally request how to move forward — likely the first step in ending the prosecution.

In a filing on Friday, Smith said that “as a result of the election” the prosecution “respectfully requests that the Court vacate the remaining deadlines in the pretrial schedule to afford the Government time to assess this unprecedented circumstance.”

“By December 2, 2024, the Government will file a status report or otherwise inform the Court of the result of its deliberations,” the filing said, adding that Trump’s attorneys do not object to the request.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan granted the motion shortly after it appeared on the court docket. “All remaining deadlines in the pretrial schedule are VACATED. By December 2, 2024, the Government shall file a status report indicating its proposed course for this case going forward,” the judge wrote.

The Justice Department has a longstanding policy against prosecuting sitting presidents. The DOJ had begun assessing how to end the cases against Trump after he won the election, sources told NBC News this week. [Continue reading…]