Former special counsel Jack Smith didn’t mince words Thursday as he testified before the GOP-led House Judiciary Committee about his investigations into President Donald Trump.
“Our investigation revealed that Donald Trump is the person who caused Jan. 6, that it was foreseeable to him and that he sought to exploit the violence,” Smith told lawmakers. “We followed the facts and we followed the law — where that led us was to an indictment of an unprecedented criminal scheme to block the peaceful transfer of power.”
It was Smith’s first public testimony about his probes into Trump’s alleged interference in the 2020 election and alleged mishandling of classified documents.
Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges in both cases. Both prosecutions were later dropped after Trump’s reelection, citing the Justice Department’s long-standing policy barring the prosecution of a sitting president.
“Looking for ways to stay in power”
Smith pushed back on claims that partisan politics drove his charging decisions, emphasizing that key witnesses were Republicans and Trump allies.
“Some of the most powerful witnesses were witnesses who, in fact, were fellow Republicans who had voted for Donald Trump, who had campaigned for him and, who wanted him to win the election,” Smith said. “These included state officials, people who worked on his campaign and advisors.”
He described Trump’s post-election actions as an effort to cling to power, not to find the truth.
“[Trump] was not looking for honest answers about whether there was fraud in the election. He was looking for ways to stay in power,” Smith testified. “And when people told him things that conflicted with him staying in power, he rejected them or he chose not even to contact people like that.”
“I will not be intimidated”
Asked about Trump’s calls for investigations into him, Smith said he viewed the rhetoric as an attempt to scare him — and others.
“The statements are meant to intimidate me. I will not be intimidated,” Smith said. “I think these statements are also made, as a warning to others what will happen if they stand up… We did our work pursuant to Department policy. We followed the facts, and we follow the law.”
Smith also criticized the broad pardons Trump granted to people charged in connection with Jan. 6.
“I do not understand why you would mass pardon people who assaulted police officers,” Smith said. “I don’t get it. I never will.”
Sharp disagreement inside the hearing room
Rep. Troy Nehls, a Republican retiring from the House, told Capitol Police officers present that he believed responsibility for Jan. 6 did not rest with Trump.
“I can tell you gentlemen that the fault does not lie with Donald Trump,” Nehls said. “It lies with… the U.S. Capitol leadership team. We know they had the intelligence, and there was going to be a high propensity for violence.”
Under questioning from Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren, Smith highlighted witnesses he viewed as especially credible — including state officials who contradicted Trump directly.
“There were witnesses who I felt would be very strong witnesses, including, for example, the secretary of state in Georgia who told Donald Trump the truth… and put him on notice that what he was saying was false,” Smith said. He added that jurors often believe such witnesses because “they pay a cost for telling the truth.”
Why Congress members’ phone records came up
Smith confirmed his office obtained phone toll records for some members of Congress as part of what he described as a standard investigative step.
“We wanted to conduct a thorough investigation… including attempts to interfere with the lawful transfer of power,” Smith said. “The conspiracy that we were investigating, it was relevant to get toll records, to understand the scope of that conspiracy, who they were seeking to coerce, who they were seeking to influence, who was seeking to help them.”
In a tense exchange with Republican Rep. Darryl Issa, Smith rejected the suggestion that he served as a political weapon.
“No,” Smith said. “My office didn’t spy on anyone.”
He also insisted the decision to charge Trump was his alone and not the result of pressure from any Biden administration official.
“President Trump was charged because the evidence established that he willfully broke the law, the very laws he took an oath to uphold,” Smith said. “Grand juries in two separate districts reached this conclusion based on his actions as alleged in the indictments they returned.”
Classified documents allegations
In his opening remarks, Smith accused Trump of illegally retaining classified records after leaving office and obstructing efforts to recover them.
“After leaving office in January of ’21, President Trump illegally kept classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago Social Club and repeatedly tried to obstruct justice to conceal his continued retention of those documents,” Smith testified. “Highly sensitive national security information withheld in a ballroom and a bathroom.”
Smith said the cases were supported by what he described as proof “beyond a reasonable doubt,” and argued the same decision would be made regardless of party.
“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 Democrat or a Republican,” he said.
“No one, no one should be above the law in this country, and the law required that he be held to account,” Smith added. “To have done otherwise… would have been to shirk my duties as a prosecutor and as a public servant.”
He also warned that pressure and retaliation aimed at investigators and prosecutors could erode the legal system.
“The rule of law is not self-executing,” Smith said. “It depends on our collective commitment to apply it… especially when that service is difficult and comes with costs.”
Committee leaders clash over Smith’s role
Chairman Jim Jordan accused Smith of running what he called a partisan investigation.
“Democrats have been going after President Trump for ten years, for a decade, and the country should never, ever forget what they did,” Jordan said.
Ranking Democrat Jamie Raskin argued the opposite — calling Smith’s work a fact-driven effort to hold Trump accountable.
“You pursued the facts. You followed every applicable law, ethics rule and DOJ regulation,” Raskin said. “You acted based solely on the facts — the opposite of Donald Trump.”
Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell called Republicans on the dais “a joke,” adding, “They’re wrong. History will harshly judge them.”
What happened behind closed doors
Smith’s appearance marked his second time before the committee. He previously testified behind closed doors in December, where he defended bringing charges against Trump and denied political influence, according to a transcript.
The transcript also shows that, shortly before that December testimony, the Justice Department instructed Smith’s lawyers that he could not discuss the classified documents case — limiting how much he could answer in that deposition.
Smith’s team has also said he will comply with U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon’s order blocking the release of the second volume of his report dealing with the classified documents case.
