Jack Smith defends criminal investigations into Trump during House hearing

Geoff Bennett:

Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee today sharply criticized former special counsel Jack Smith over his investigation of President Trump, which produced more than 40 criminal charges that have since been dropped. GOP lawmakers accused Smith of partisanship.

But, as Ali Rogin reports, Smith defended his conduct, saying the law required him to act.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH):

Do you swear a firm under penalty of perjury that the test money you're about to give is true?

Ali Rogin:

The first public hearing for former special counsel Smith...

Rep. Jim Jordan:

So help you God?

Jack Smith, Former Special Counsel:

I do.

Ali Rogin:

... quickly became a sharp partisan debate.

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA):

And with that, I yield back in disgust of this witness.

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA):

These guys, my Republican colleagues, are a joke.

Ali Rogin:

Even as Smith tried to stay above the political fray.

Jack Smith:

I am not a politician and I have no partisan loyalties.

Ali Rogin:

As he defended his more than two year investigation into President Trump.

Jack Smith:

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.

Ali Rogin:

Smith's team charged Trump with conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential election he lost, culminating in the January 6 Capitol riot. Smith and the Department of Justice dropped the charges after Trump was reelected.

A separate case and 40 criminal charges related to classified documents Trump kept at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida were dismissed by a federal judge in 2024, who said Smith had been unlawfully appointed.

Jack Smith:

Our investigation developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in criminal activity. 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.

Ali Rogin:

Smith's testimony comes as the Trump administration continues to attack his credibility. The Justice Department has fired many who worked on the January 6 investigation. A watchdog agency is looking into Smith's work.

And President Trump continues to attack him, including during the hearing, posting on TRUTH Social that Smith is a deranged animal who shouldn't be allowed to practice law and that he hoped the attorney general was looking at what he's done.

Democrats read the post aloud.

Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO):

We have a word for this. It's called weaponization. It's called corruption.

Ali Rogin:

But Republicans backed the president, directly accusing Smith of being a partisan actor weaponizing the Department of Justice.

Rep. Darrell Issa:

You, like the president's men for Richard Nixon, went after your political enemies. Maybe they're not your political enemies, but they sure as hell were Joe Biden's political enemies, weren't they? They were Harris' political enemies. They were the enemies of the president, and you were their arm, weren't you?

Jack Smith:

No.

Ali Rogin:

Republicans also pressed Smith about secretly obtained subpoenas for records of phone calls made by Republican senators around January 6. Smith said it was common for investigators to collect call logs, which do not include their content.

Rep. Jim Jordan:

Not going to be charged. They're not going to see it. They're not going to know because we're not going to tell them. So let's go ahead and do it. It's exactly what happened.

Jack Smith:

The toll records that we secured in the nondisclosure orders were consistent with policy.

Ali Rogin:

Democrats on the committee praised Smith for his service.

Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN):

I think you're a great American and you came out of this as being somebody who people can respect and look up to.

Ali Rogin:

And asked about how many Republicans he relied on during his investigation into the 2020 election.

Jack Smith:

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.

Ali Rogin:

The classified documents case got far fewer questions. The Trump-appointed judge in that case had sealed a report Smith's team prepared and Trump's lawyers are asking for it to be permanently blocked from release.

One question Smith left open was whether someone could or should revisit his charges when Trump leaves office.

Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA):

So they can be refiled and he can be prosecuted after he leaves office; is that correct?

Jack Smith:

I'm not going to speak to that.

Ali Rogin:

He only said the case was dismissed without prejudice, meaning it was not closed for good.

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Ali Rogin.