What we're covering
• NOW: Jack Smith, the former special prosecutor who led two failed prosecutions against President Donald Trump, is publicly testifying before the House Judiciary Committee. Smith told lawmakers that he stands by his decisions and that as a prosecutor he had “no partisan loyalties.”
• Scrutiny over probes: Smith investigated Trump for his role in the efforts to subvert the 2020 presidential election results as well as the president’s handling of classified documents. Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan last October, accused Smith of running a “partisan and politically motivated” probe of Trump and conducting “abusive surveillance” of lawmakers, among other things.
•Phone records: When asked about obtaining phone records of Republican members of Congress during the course of his investigation, Smith said it was “common” to pull such information when investigating a conspiracy case. Republicans have slammed Smith for obtaining cellphone metadata during his probe, calling the move “political weaponization.”
House sets up funding showdown with Senate over program that allows senators to sue the DOJ
The House just overwhelmingly agreed to add language to a critical funding package to end a recent program that allowed senators to sue the Department of Justice if they personally had been under surveillance.
The hardline move by the House sets up a major collision with the Senate, which will need to back the full funding measure – including this DOJ language – or risk a government shutdown next week.
The House is essentially jamming the Senate with the DOJ language and then leaving town, while the Senate will come back next week to consider the funding package.
The funding deadline is January 30.
GOP bashes Smith for phone record tactics embraced by Trump's first DOJ
Rep. Kevin Kiley, a Republican from California, grilled Jack Smith on various prosecutorial tactics that, in Kiley’s words, were later “reversed and rebuked” by the Justice Department and courts.
Much of his questioning focused on Smith’s subpoena of certain phone records from members of Congress and on the non-disclosure orders he obtained preventing phone carriers from notifying the lawmakers of the subpoenas.
The Republican narrative does not acknowledge, however, that prosecutors embraced the same tactics in investigations launched by the first Trump administration and the Justice Department’s move to rein in those tactics was in response to scrutiny of those Trump-era probes.
When Smith sought the nondisclosure orders, he did not indicate to US District Judge James E. Boasberg — also the target of GOP criticism for his approval of the orders — that the phone records belonged to members of Congress.
The Justice Department since changed its policy so that it requires prosecutors make it clear to judges when their non-disclosure requests pertain to members of Congress. Kiley described this change of policy as an example of Smith’s tactics specifically being rebuked by Justice Department.
But in fact, the Justice Department decided to change the policy in response to an inspector general report looking at the subpoenas and non-disclosure orders that were obtained by the Justice Department during Trump’s first administration.
The IG looked at four criminal leak investigations that were launched in 2017 – when Trump was president – and uncovered 40 examples of non-disclosure orders obtained related to subpoenas for records of Congress members and their staff.
“Additionally, DOJ policy in effect at the time did not require the NDOs filed with the courts to reference, and they did not reference, the fact that they related to requests for records of Members of Congress or congressional staffers,” the IG report said.
Smith says subpoenas for lawmakers' phone records was "common practice" for conspiracy investigations
When asked about obtaining phone records of Republican members of Congress during the course of his investigation, former Special Counsel Jack Smith said it was “common” to pull such information when investigating a conspiracy case.
“We wanted to conduct a thorough investigation of the matters that was assigned to me, including attempts to interfere with the lawful transfer of power,” Smith said of the investigation into attempts to overthrow the 2020 election.
Congressional Republicans have recently slammed Smith for obtaining cell phone metadata known as “toll records” of some lawmakers during his probe, calling the move “political weaponization.”
Toll records are not wiretaps and don’t reveal the content of calls. They do reveal phone numbers for incoming and outgoing calls, the time of the calls, and the duration of the calls, among other things.
“The conspiracy that we were investigating, it was relevant to get toll records to understand the scope of that conspiracy, who they were seeking to coerce, who they were seeking to influence, who was seeking to help them,” Smith continued.
GOP critics have claimed that Smith was involved in unconstitutional snooping on Congress. Smith said last month in his private deposition that this was a “false and misleading” narrative.
“In conducting a criminal investigation, securing non-content toll records,” Smith testified Thursday, “is a common practice in almost any complex concern.”
Smith said in his deposition he only subpoenaed these records for nine Republicans because he already had evidence that Trump tried to call those lawmakers while attempting to delay the election certification on January 6.
Investigators examined phone records belonging to Sens. Lindsey Graham, Josh Hawley, and Ron Johnson, among others.
Hearing in recess for House votes
The hearing is now in recess to allow for scheduled votes on the House floor.
Jack Smith tells lawmakers: “I stand by my decisions”
Jack Smith told Congress that he stood by his decisions as a special counsel and that as a prosecutor he had “no partisan loyalties.”
“Our investigation developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in criminal activity. If asked whether to prosecute a former president based on the same facts today, I would do so regardless of whether that president was a Republican or a Democrat,” Smith said in his opening remarks.
He said Trump’s political beliefs and candidacy played no roles in his prosecutorial decisions.
Smith criticized the way the Trump administration has punished career attorneys, FBI agents and other Justice Department staff for their work on his probes.
“After nearly 30 years of public service, including in international settings, I have seen how the rule of law can erode. My fear is that we have seen the rule of law function in our country for so long that many of us have come to take it for granted,” Smith said.
“The rule of law is not self-executing — it depends on our collective commitment to apply it,” he added. “It requires dedicated service on behalf of others, especially when that service is difficult and comes with costs.”
Top Democrat on House panel praises Jack Smith: "You did everything right"
Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, praised former special counsel Jack Smith during his opening statement and condemned President Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election.
“Donald Trump says you’re a criminal and you belong in prison,” Raskin said. “Not because you did anything wrong – but because you did everything right. You pursued the facts, you followed the law.”
Raskin also took a swipe at his Republican colleagues who have still promoted false claims that the 2020 election was rigged, which Raskin referred to as the “big lie.”
“(Trump) knew he lost, but he threw everything into his big lie, which some people, even in this room, to this day, will still stand by, and swear by,” Raskin said.
Raskin noted that four police officers who defended the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, were in the room to watch the hearing. They are Aquilino Gonell, Harry Dunn, Daniel Hodges and Michael Fanone, who have all become Trump critics since the insurrection.
Jack Smith begins his opening statement
Smith began testifying before the committee just before 10:30 a.m. Thursday.
“I am not a politician and I have no partisan loyalties,” he said.
GOP Chairman accuses Smith and others of being out to “get” Trump as he kicks off high-stakes hearing
The Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee kicked off Jack Smith’s high-stakes hearing before the panel by accusing the former special counsel and others of being out to “get” President Donald Trump through criminal cases, impeachments and other actions.
“It was always about politics and to get President Trump. They were willing to do just about anything,” Chairman Jim Jordan said just after the hearing got underway.
He went on to tick through a winding series of grievances concerning Smith, state prosecutors who pursued cases against Trump, lawmakers who impeached him and others whom he said unfairly targeted the president in recent years.
Smith’s pursuit of Trump, Jordan claimed, was an effort to ensure he wouldn’t be reelected in 2024.
“There’s an election around the corner. It’s coming in 33 days, and he’s got to get President Trump. He’s got to stop President Trump from running, tie him up in court,” he said. “It was always about politics.”
Following Jordan’s remarks, the top Democrat on the committee – Rep. Jamie Raskin – is now delivering his opening statement.
Jack Smith to emphasize his Trump prosecutions were not partisan
Jack Smith plans to emphasize his experience and nonpartisanship in his opening statement today, telling congress that he’s served as a career prosecutor for nearly three decades in Republican and Democratic administrations. His prosecutions, he is expected to say in his opening statement, had nothing to do with President Donald Trump’s politics, but rather his actions.
“I am not a politician, and I have no partisan loyalties. My career has been dedicated to serving our country by upholding the rule of law,” Smith says in his prepared statement, which was reviewed by CNN.
Smith is expected to tell Congress that his approach is to always follow the facts without fear or favor.
“Rather than accept his defeat in the 2020 presidential election, President Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results and prevent the lawful transfer of power,” Smith wrote in his prepared statement.
“President Trump attempted to induce state officials to ignore true vote counts; to manufacture fraudulent slates of presidential electors in seven states that he had lost; to force his own Vice President to act in contravention of his oath and to instead advance President Trump’s personal interests; and, on January 6, 2021, to direct an angry mob to the United States Capitol to obstruct the congressional certification of the presidential election and then exploit the rioters’ violence to further delay it,” he added.
On January 6, 2021, over 140 law enforcement officers were assaulted, Smith plans to tell Congress, “a fact we should never forget.”
“Our investigation developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in criminal activity,” Smith says in the statement. “If asked whether to prosecute a former President based on the same facts today, I would do so regardless of whether that President was a Republican or a Democrat.”
Who is Jack Smith?
Jack Smith, a longtime public corruption prosecutor, was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in November 2022 to oversee the investigations into Donald Trump.
Smith investigated Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results and his handling of classified documents. He brought criminal charges against Trump in 2023. Trump, no longer president at the time, pleaded not guilty in both cases and neither went to trial.
The case over mishandling classified documents ended with District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, declaring that Smith’s appointment was unlawful. The election interference case was hamstrung by a landmark Supreme Court decision and dropped after Trump was reelected.
Trump has continued to say that he did not do anything wrong on January 6, 2021, and since taking office for a second term he has pardoned over 1,000 people who had been charged in connection to the violent attack.
Smith’s past experience ranges from prosecuting a sitting US senator to bringing cases against gang members who were ultimately convicted of murdering New York City police officers. In recent years, Smith has prosecuted war crimes at The Hague.
What we learned from Smith's closed-door deposition from December, according to testimony obtained by CNN
Former special counsel Jack Smith, last month, defended his criminal investigation into President Donald Trump in a closed-door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee as he faces scrutiny from Republican lawmakers
Smith was called to testify about Trump’s alleged mishandling and retention of classified documents and his role in attempting to overturn the 2020 election, according to sources familiar with the investigation.
Here’s what Smith addressed during the December deposition, which lasted more than eight hours:
- Defends probes: “The decision to bring charges against President Trump was mine, but the basis for those charges rests entirely with President Trump and his actions, as alleged in the indictments returned by grand juries in two different districts,” Smith said in a portion of his opening statement obtained by CNN.
- Phone records: Smith was seeking to clarify issues surrounding the use of phone records he subpoenaed of lawmakers Trump spoke with about the election scheme. “I didn’t choose those members; President Trump did,” Smith said, according to the statements obtained by CNN. But there may be details Smith may not have been willing or able to testify about, such as parts of the second volume of his report around Trump’s handling of classified documents in Mar-a-Lago,a source said.
- Toll records: Smith addressed his use of toll records, which are a typical type of information gathered secretly during criminal investigations, according to sources familiar with the investigation. “(Toll) records were lawfully subpoenaed and were relevant to complete a comprehensive investigation. January 6 was an attack on the structure of our democracy in which over 100 heroic law enforcement officers were assaulted,” Smith said, according to his opening statements obtained by CNN.
- Denied investigations were politically motivated: Smith also said in portions of his opening statements obtained by CNN that he would have conducted his investigation regardless of the president’s political party.
Former special counsel Jack Smith will testify in House Judiciary hearing today
Jack Smith, the former special counsel who led two failed prosecutions of President Donald Trump, will testify publicly before the House Judiciary Committee today at 10 a.m. ET.
According to the committee, the hearing will examine the operations of Smith’s office and his team’s investigations and prosecutions of Trump and his co-defendants.
The former special counsel has spoken to the House Judiciary Committee before, in private, but today the cameras will be on, and his team is prepared for members of Congress to engage in the political theater that comes with that.
Long speeches, they said, are expected.
Smith’s role — in which he brought two criminal indictments against a president — was unprecedented. His public testimony is expected to be major and flashy moment, as Trump has repeatedly called for Smith to be criminally prosecuted. Smith will have to walk a tightrope to avoid violating court secrecy rules around the cases and providing Congress fulsome answers that are likely to be closely scrutinized for accuracy.
Smith’s December 17 testimony before the House Judiciary Committee lasted more than eight hours. Lawmakers grilled him over the two criminal investigations into Trump, one probing the mishandling and retention of classified documents and a second inquiry into his role in attempting to overturn the 2020 election.
CNN’s Piper Hudspeth Blackburn contributed to this report.
