Trump special counsel, Carroll listed among Time’s most influential

Two important figures in former President Trump’s legal struggles have made it onto this year’s Time magazine list of the 100 most influential people.

Special counsel Jack Smith, who is overseeing both Trump’s case related to efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election and his case involving mishandled classified documents, and advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, whose legal battles with the former president resulted in him being ordered to pay $83.3 million for defaming her by a jury in January, both made it onto the 2024 “Time 100” list.

Smith’s profile for the list was written by former acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal. In the profile, Katyal said Smith has been “dealt a difficult hand” in his job, including “strict time constraints, a tough judge, an unending wave of attacks from Trump, and intense public pressure.”

“But as a man who built his career prosecuting powerful public officials accused of major crimes, he is better equipped for this than most,” Katyal continued. “Time and again, he has met the challenges with an aggressive and decisive approach befitting his position.”

Carroll’s profile was written by Tarana Burke, an activist and the founder of the MeToo movement. In her profile, Burke describes the advice columnist as embodying “what #MeToo was actually about: not a woman taking down a powerful man, but a woman freeing herself.”

“And in E. Jean’s case, it just so happens, freeing millions more alongside her,” Burke continues. “We like to count women’s days and then count them out. That’s impossible to do with E. Jean. Her moves are undeniably heroic.”

Carroll celebrated her placement on the “Time 100” list on her Substack on Wednesday.

“And….my little brag? Carroll said. “TIME magazine just bestowed upon yours truly the STAGGERINGLY GREAT honor of being named to the TIME100—The 100 Most Influential People of 2024. This is a tribute to every survivor in the country.”