According to the Chicago Tribune, special prosecutor Dan Webb alleged that Smollett told the siblings, “I want you to attack me, but when you hit me, I want you to kind of pull your punches a bit because I don’t want to get seriously hurt.”
“Smollett also instructed them to put a rope around his neck to ‘make it look more like a lynching, like a hate crime,’” Webb also told the court.
To make sure the trio got it right, the Chicago paper reports that “The three men went on a ‘dry run’ before the attack, part of which was captured on surveillance camera, Webb said. Smollett’s Mercedes can be seen circling the Streeterville intersection, showing the brothers the area where he wanted the attack to occur.”
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The Washington Free Beacon pointed out that President Joe Biden, then a candidate, also believed Smollett’s story to be true and indicative of a racist America:
“What happened today to Jussie Smollett must never be tolerated in this country,” Biden said at the time. “We must stand up and demand that we no longer give this hate safe harbor; that homophobia and racism have no place on our streets or in our hearts. We are with you, Jussie.”
Of course, several commentators have wondered where these politicians are now that Smollett is on trial. They seem to have abandoned him at the stand. Furthermore, neither Harris nor Biden have explained how the attack could be racially motivated if two black men were the ones attacking Smollett.