U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith, who led the federal cases against Donald Trump on charges of trying to overturn his 2020 election defeat and mishandling of classified documents, has resigned, as the Republican president-elect prepared to return to the White House.

Smith has spent the last two months winding down the two federal criminal prosecutions of Donald Trump and had indicated he would resign before inauguration.

Donald Trump has thanked the Supreme Court after it refused his request to halt his sentencing hearing in New York. Newsweek sought email comment from Trump's attorney on Friday. Trump has long attacked legal decisions that have not gone his way.

The court turned down Trump's last-minute bid to prevent his sentencing, scheduled for Friday in New York state court in Manhattan 10 days before his inauguration for his second term as president.

President-elect Trump responded to the Supreme Court’s decision allowing his hush money criminal case sentencing to move forward by not criticizing the justices, instead going after his trial judge. The high court in a 5-4 decision refused Trump’s last-ditch emergency request to block Friday’s sentencing in New York as he appeals his immunity claims,