Former special counsel Jack Smith has requested a public hearing before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees on his investigations into President Donald Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents and involvement in January 6.
Smith’s request follows an Oct. 14 letter from House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) in which Jordan demanded Smith schedule a testimony before the committee by Oct. 28. Jordan alleged that Smith conducted “partisan and politically motivated prosecutions” of Trump, referring to Smith’s special counsel investigations into Trump’s handling of classified documents and Trump’s role in the January 6 riots.
Smith sent a letter through his legal team to the leadership of both the House and Senate Judiciary committees on Thursday, requesting the open hearings, “given the many mischaracterizations”
of his investigations into Trump, the letter reads.
“During the investigation of President Trump, Mr. Smith steadfastly adhered to established legal standards and Department of Justice guidelines, consistent with his approach throughout his career as a dedicated public servant. He is prepared to answer questions about the Special Counsel’s investigation and prosecution, but requires assurance from the Department of Justice that he will not be punished for doing so,” Smith’s lawyers from Covington & Burling LLP wrote in the letter.
Smith’s legal team told Jordan, Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and the two Democratic ranking members that Smith “is available to testify in an open hearing at your earliest convenience.” Smith requested guidance from the Department of Justice for his testimony on “federal grand jury secrecy requirements” and advice on what he can and cannot discuss. He also requested access to the Special Counsel files, as he no longer has access to them.
House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jamie Raskin (D-MD) sent a supplemental letter to Jordan on Thursday in response to Smith’s request, urging him to grant Smith’s request for public testimony. Raskin reiterated that he appreciates Jordan’s push for transparency on Smith’s special counsel investigation, though the two Judiciary Committee leaders come at the issue from starkly different perspectives.
“I commended you for apparently joining us in demanding the full release of Mr. Smith’s report—paid for by American taxpayers—as well as all accompanying records which the Department of Justice (DOJ) has been desperately concealing. I am now calling on you to accept Mr. Smith’s offer to testify at a public hearing so the American people can all hear directly from him,” Raskin wrote in the letter.
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Jordan did not specify in his letter whether his demanded testimony from Smith would be a public, open hearing or not.
Jordan’s demand for Smith’s testimony followed the breaking news of Operation Arctic Frost, in which Jack Smith tracked the phone calls of several GOP senators during his January 6 investigation. He’s likely to face a grilling from Republicans over the operation during his testimony.