Former special counsel Jack Smith told a House of Representatives panel on Thursday that President Donald Trump was 'looking for ways to stay in power' as he confronted Republican criticism.
WASHINGTON — Former Special Counsel Jack Smith, who unsuccessfully prosecuted President Donald Trump, told a House of Representatives panel on Thursday that Trump was "looking for ways to stay in power" following his defeat in the 2020 election as he confronted Republican criticism of his investigation.
Smith fielded questions from the Republican-controlled House Judiciary Committee about his two criminal cases, which he dropped after Trump won the 2024 presidential election. One case accused Trump of conspiring to overturn his defeat in the 2020 election, while the other accused him of unlawfully holding onto classified documents.The hearing marked the first time the American public heard at length from Smith, whose historic prosecutions dominated Trump's years out of power and helped fuel the Republican president's quest for retribution since returning to office. Smith told the panel he expected the Justice Department under Trump to try to bring criminal charges against him."President Trump was charged because the evidence established that he willfully broke the very laws that he took an oath to uphold," Smith told the House panel. "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."After the hearing, Trump reiterated his calls for Smith to be prosecuted, writing on social media that he had "destroyed the lives of many innocent people."Republicans allege biasRepublican lawmakers sought to discredit Smith's investigation and buttress Trump's claims that the probes were an abuse of the legal system. Republicans focused particular attention on Smith's decision to seek limited phone records from former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and several Republican senators, along with court orders that barred lawmakers from being notified of the subpoenas.Trump allies have argued that the records show Smith's investigation was overzealous and aimed at the political opposition."It was always about politics," Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the Republican chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said at the start of the hearing. "To get Donald Trump, they were willing to do just about anything."Smith said the records were necessary to examine Trump's efforts to pressure Republican lawmakers to block certification of the election. He said he had "grave concerns about obstruction of justice in this inv
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