House Judiciary Republicans on Wednesday released a transcript and video of Jack Smith’s closed-door testimony to Congress.
Former Special Counsel Jack Smith appeared on Capitol Hill last month for a closed-door testimony before the House Judiciary Committee.
Republican lawmakers called Jack Smith to testify over his “partisan and politically motivated” Trump prosecutions.
Jack Smith was appointed as Special Counsel in 2022 by Joe Biden’s Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate Trump just one day after Trump announced his 2024 bid for the White House.
In June 2023, Jack Smith indicted Trump on 37 federal counts in Miami for lawfully storing presidential records at his Mar-a-Lago estate, which was protected by Secret Service agents.
In a separate case in Washington DC, Jack Smith indicted Trump on four counts: Conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.
Jack Smith defended his inquisition in an opening statement to congressional investigators.
“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,” Jack Smith said.
During his deposition, Jack Smith said his prosecutors framed the case against Trump as a fraud case rather than a First Amendment issue.
“Fraud is not protected by the First Amendment, so in my mind it was important to make that clear in the indictment…” Jack Smith said as he boasted about the case ‘prevailing’ in the district court with corrupt Obama-appointed Judge Chutkan.
Two of Jack Smith’s charges against President Trump in the DC case were ultimately torpedoed by the US Supreme Court after it issued a ruling on the obstruction statute – 1512(c)(2).
“The president’s statements that he believed that the election was rife with fraud – those are certainly statements that are protected by the First Amendment, correct?” the congressional investigator asked Jack Smith.
Jack Smith said Trump did not have a First Amendment right to question the election.
“Absolutely not. If they are made to target a lawful government function, and they’re made with knowing falsity. No, they’re not. That was my point about fraud not being protected by the First Amendment,” Jack Smith said.
The congressional investigator said there is a long list of disputed elections going back to the 1800s, where candidates have spoken out about fraud.
Jack Smith pivoted and claimed there is “no historical analog for what President Trump did in this case.”
Mike Davis, noted attorney and founder of the Article III Project, said Jack Smith must face criminal prosecution for violating President Trump’s constitutional rights by “contorting laws” to criminalize protected First Amendment speech.
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