Daijiworld Media Network - Washington
Washington, Jan 22: Former Special Counsel Jack Smith, who led two high-profile criminal cases against then former US President Donald Trump, is set to testify publicly before the House Judiciary Committee on January 22, seeking to counter Republican allegations that the prosecutions were politically motivated.
Smith, who was deposed behind closed doors for nearly eight hours last month, told lawmakers that he believed there was sufficient evidence to convict Trump for his alleged role in the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol. The House Judiciary Committee released video footage of the deposition along with a 255-page transcript on December 31.
“Our view of the evidence was that he caused it and that he exploited it, and that it was foreseeable to him,” Smith said during the deposition, referring to Trump’s alleged culpability in the Capitol riot.
Ahead of the private deposition, Smith had requested to testify in a public hearing. That request was initially rejected by committee chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who has repeatedly described the cases against Trump as “lawfare”. However, Jordan later scheduled a public hearing with live cameras for January 22.
Smith secured two indictments against Trump in 2023 — one related to the alleged illegal retention of classified documents after Trump left office, and another accusing him of conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Both cases were dropped after Trump won the 2024 election, in line with long-standing Justice Department policy barring prosecution of a sitting president.
The Republican-led scrutiny of Smith comes as the Trump administration’s Justice Department has launched investigations into several figures seen as political adversaries, including former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Smith himself. Reports suggest investigators are examining whether Smith violated the Hatch Act, which restricts political activity by federal employees.
Smith’s legal team has dismissed the probe as “baseless”, asserting that his conduct followed established precedent, including that of the special prosecutor who investigated President Richard Nixon in the 1970s. Former White House ethics lawyer Richard Painter also said he saw no Hatch Act violation, noting that Smith’s filings were accepted by the courts.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department has reportedly dismissed more than a dozen officials who assisted Smith during the Trump prosecutions.
In his deposition, Smith firmly rejected claims that the cases were driven by political considerations or aimed at influencing the 2024 election. “I would never take orders from a political leader to hamper another person in an election. That’s not who I am,” he said.
Trump has repeatedly attacked Smith, branding him “deranged” and a “wacko”, and alleging that he was used by former President Joe Biden to target a political opponent.
In a report released shortly before Trump returned to the Oval Office, Smith defended his actions, stating that Trump’s “unprecedented efforts to unlawfully retain power after losing the 2020 election and his unlawful retention of classified documents after leaving office” warranted prosecution under established Justice Department principles.