It was his first public speech and it was brief, and Special Counsel Jack Smith wasted no time in reminding the public just how serious this case involving Donald Trump really is, according to The Hill. He also responded to the stream of GOP criticism that’s been trickling in since the beginning of the Mar-a-Lago investigation.

“This indictment was voted by a grand jury of citizens from the Southern District of Florida,” Smith began. “And I invite everyone to read it in full to understand the scope and the gravity of the crimes charged.”

“The men and women of the United States intelligence community and our Armed Forces dedicate their lives to protecting our nation and its people. Our laws that protect national defense information are critical to safety and security of the United States and they must be enforced. Violations of those laws put our country at risk.”

But in his brief, slightly less than three-minute speech, he left out two words that are likely to cause Trump to be in a real snit. Never once did Smith ever utter the words “former President.”

As we already know, Trump can’t get through the day without calling himself “President,” and he still uses the presidential seal at his golf clubs, offices, and wherever else he feels like it. And the fact that Smith carefully avoided this phrase undoubtedly means Trump is fuming over this. Trump will almost certainly consider this a slight.

Smith opened his statement by saying, “Today, an indictment was unsealed charging Donald J. Trump with felony violations of our national security laws as well as participating in a conspiracy to obstruct justice.”

OUCH. And the words “former president” were not ever used. Because Trump is not above the law and is being treated like anyone else would be.

But whether Trump likes this or not, there’s definitely more serious fish to fry.

The Justice Department unveiled 37 counts against the former president, and the bulk of these (31 counts) are for violations of the Espionage Act. This act bars the retention of national defense information.

Analysis of the documents for which Trump is facing charges shows that most involve the intelligence collected on foreign countries or American military capabilities. But these are a mere fraction of the more than 300 documents that have been recovered from Mar-a-Lago over several months.

The other counts fall under charges for obstruction of justice, making false statements to investigators, corruptly concealing documents, and numerous other associated conspiracy charges. And Trump’s valet, Walt Nauta, has also been indicted.

In the short video, Smith also reminded viewers Trump is innocent until proven guilty, but he definitely pushed back against criticism from Trump and his fellow GOPers, who have all alleged the investigation is politically motivated.

And when Smith released the indictment earlier this week, it became eminently clear just how strong this case against Trump really is. Previously to that, it wasn’t really clear just how strong the case was, but now we can see Trump has really put his foot in it.

“Adherence to the rule of law is a bedrock principle of the Department of Justice,” Smith said. “And our nation’s commitment to the rule of law sets an example for the world. We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone.”

“Applying those laws, collecting facts — that’s what determines the outcome of an investigation. Nothing more, nothing less.”

He also lauded the Justice Department and FBI for their work on the case.

“The prosecutors in my office are among the most talented and experienced in the Department of Justice,” Smith said. “They have investigated this case hewing to the highest ethical standards, and they will continue to do so as this case proceeds.”

Obviously, Smith has worked assiduously on this case and he’s no dummy. He’s a very intelligent man who probably understands Trump more than the ex-president knows himself. I’m willing to bet that Smith is well aware that by not calling him “former president,” Trump would go through the roof. His massive ego won’t let him be considered a peon, which is all he really is. He’s probably sh*tting gold bars by now.

Here’s Smith’s short speech below, with the line omitting “former president” right at the beginning.