Unsealed Smartmatic Filing Shows U.S. Attorney Pirro Boasted of Aiding Trump

Newly unredacted filings in Smartmatic’s $2.7 billion defamation suit against Fox News reveal that Jeanine Pirro, now the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, privately told Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel in September 2020 that she was 'determined to aid' President Donald Trump and the Republican Party. The text messages were sent while Pirro was still hosting a weekend program on Fox News, whose policies bar on-air talent from overt political activity. In the same cache of messages, Pirro boasted, 'I work so hard for the party across the country,' and described herself as 'the No. 1-watched show on all news cable all weekend.' She also referred to colleague Sean Hannity as an 'egomaniac' after an Oval Office encounter. Smartmatic included the exchanges to support its claim that Fox hosts knowingly amplified baseless election-fraud allegations that damaged the voting-technology company. The disclosures add to the pressure on Fox as it defends itself against Smartmatic’s claim that the network’s coverage cost the firm billions of dollars in lost business. They also raise questions about Pirro’s past political advocacy while serving in a high-profile Justice Department post, although neither she nor the department has commented on the latest filings.