Former particular counsel Jack Smith defended his choice to carry prices twice towards President Donald Trump — telling lawmakers in a closed-door deposition earlier this month that his crew “had proof past affordable doubt in each circumstances” that Trump was responsible of the costs within the 2020 election interference and labeled paperwork circumstances.
And Smith fervently denied that there was any political affect behind his choice — opposite to what the Republicans on the Home Judiciary Committee, who requested the testimony, alleged — comparable to stress from then-President Joe Biden or Legal professional Normal Merrick Garland.
“No,” Smith responded repeatedly.
On this picture from video launched by the Home Judiciary Committee, former particular counsel Jack Smith speaks throughout a deposition, on Dec. 17, 2025, on the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C.
Home Judiciary Committee through AP
Simply over an hour earlier than the closed testimony on Dec. 17, the Division of Justice despatched an electronic mail to Smith’s attorneys stopping him from discussing the labeled paperwork case, based on the 255-page transcript of the deposition, launched Wednesday by the Judiciary Committee together with a video of the listening to.
This meant Smith was unable to reply most questions on that case and the deposition — meant to ask questions concerning the alleged weaponization of the DOJ towards Trump and his allies — primarily centered on the 2020 election case as a substitute.
Smith’s counsel stated the DOJ additionally refused to ship a lawyer to advise Smith on whether or not his statements had been consistent with their dedication of what he may or couldn’t say concerning the circumstances, based on the deposition. Smith did say, nevertheless, that Trump “obstructed” the labeled paperwork investigation “to hide his continued retention of these paperwork.”
Trump repeatedly denied the allegations in each felony circumstances, which had been unprecedented towards an American president, and decried them as a part of a “witch hunt.” Smith, one among Trump’s frequent targets on social media, finally dropped the circumstances after Trump’s reelection as a result of he stated that he was constitutionally prohibited from prosecuting a sitting president.
Smith asserted in his ultimate report that “however for Mr. Trump’s election and imminent return to the Presidency, the Workplace assessed that the admissible proof was adequate to acquire and maintain a conviction at trial.”
Throughout the deposition, Smith argued, as he had previously, that Trump “President Trump engaged in a felony scheme to overturn the outcomes of the 2020 election and to stop the lawful switch of energy.”
When requested if Trump was liable for the violence on the Capitol on Jan. 6, Smith stated “Our view of the proof was that he brought on it and that he exploited it and that it was foreseeable to him.”
Smith argued that Trump’s claims that he gained the 2020 election weren’t protected free speech as a result of they had been meant to focus on a authorities operate.
“There isn’t any historic analog for what President Trump did on this case. As we stated within the indictment, he was free to say that he thought he gained the election. He was even free to say falsely that he gained the election,” Smith stated. “However what he was not free to do was violate Federal legislation and use figuring out — knowingly false statements about election fraud to focus on a lawful authorities operate. That he was not allowed to do. And that differentiates this case from any previous historical past.”
And Smith stated Trump wrote a tweet that “with out query in my thoughts endangered the lifetime of his personal Vice President” throughout the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol.
Smith stated a number of witnesses who stated they voted or campaigned for Trump — together with the Speaker of the Home in Arizona and Speaker of the Home in Michigan — had been the muse of the case.
“We had an elector in Pennsylvania who’s a former Congressman who was going to be an elector for President Trump who stated that what they had been making an attempt to do was an try to overthrow the federal government and unlawful. Our case was constructed on, frankly, Republicans who put their allegiance to the nation earlier than the celebration,” Smith stated.
Requested why Smith didn’t cost any of the alleged co-conspirators, Smith stated “As we acknowledged within the ultimate report, we analyzed the proof towards totally different co-conspirators. We — my employees decided that we did have proof to cost individuals at a sure cut-off date. I had not made ultimate determinations about that on the time that President Trump gained reelection, which means that our workplace was going to be closed down.”
Smith stated he had proof that Trump ordered the alleged co-conspirators to position telephone calls to senators the night time of Jan. 6 to attempt to delay the certification vote.
The committee pressed Smith why he didn’t communicate with Trump allies Steve Bannon, Roger Stone or Peter Navarro as a part of their investigation.
“We pursued the investigative routes that we thought had been essentially the most fruitful,” Smith argued. “I did not suppose it will be fruitful to attempt to query them.”
Former Particular Counsel Jack Smith leaves after testifying in a closed-door deposition earlier than the Home Judiciary Committee within the Rayburn Home Workplace Constructing on Capitol Hill, on Dec. 17, 2025, in Washington, D.C.
Andrew Harnik/Getty Photographs
They usually pressed him on seizing telephones of members of Congress. Smith stated solely Scott Perry had his telephone seized and no senators did.
“I do not recall that,” Smith stated when requested if he wished a search warrant for the content material of any textual content messages from members of Congress.
Smith stated he simply wished toll data and confirmed that he authorized the subpoenas.
“If Donald Trump had chosen to name quite a lot of Democratic Senators, we might have gotten toll data for Democratic Senators. So duty for why these data, why we collected them, that is — that lies with Donald Trump,” Smith stated.
Smith recalled that Jim Jordan, the Judiciary Committee chair, was in direct contact with White Home on Jan. 6, based on an interview his crew performed with Mark Meadows.
Meadows acknowledged that Jordan was scared. “I’ve by no means seen Jim Jordan frightened of something,” Meadows stated, based on Smith.
Smith stated he’s “eyes large open” that he believes Trump will search retribution towards him.
“I got here right here. I used to be requested to come back right here,” he added.
