Jack Smith Defends Trump Indictments at House Judiciary Hearing

Former Special Counsel Jack Smith defended his indictments of Donald Trump during a heated House Judiciary Committee hearing, saying his investigation developed proof “beyond a reasonable doubt” that the former president “engaged in criminal activity,” more than a year after the prosecutions were rendered moot by the 2024 presidential election.

Smith said his testimony was motivated by concern for the rule of law, warning “we have seen the rule of law functioning in our country for so long that many of us come to take it for granted.” It was his first public testimony since the investigations into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his handling of classified documents were dropped.

Trump, who has repeatedly called Smith a “sick person,” renewed a call on Truth Social to send Smith to prison. Smith pushed back against House Republicans, calling many narratives about his team “false and misleading.” He said, “President Trump has sought to seek revenge against career prosecutors, FBI agents, and support staff, simply for having worked on these cases,” and added that vilifying and seeking retribution against those people is wrong.

Smith said, “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.” Republicans pressed the scope of Smith’s probes, including his collection of cell phone records of members of Congress such as Sens.

Key Topics

Politics, Jack Smith, Donald Trump, House Judiciary Committee, Merrick Garland, Jim Jordan