Former special counsel Jack Smith, who secured two indictments against Donald Trump, said he is willing to testify before Congress in open hearings as long as the U.S. Justice Department commits “that he will not be punished for doing so.”
In a letter addressed to Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the chairmen of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, respectively, Smith’s lawyers said their client wants to publicly set the record straight on his prosecutorial work on the Trump cases.
“Given the many mischaracterizations of Mr. Smith’s investigation into President Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents and role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election, Mr. Smith respectfully requests the opportunity to testify in open hearings before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees,” the letter states.
Lawyers Lanny Breuer and Peter Koski defended Smith’s probes, saying that he followed longstanding DOJ guidelines.
Smith “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,” they added.
“To that end, Mr. Smith needs guidance from the Department of Justice regarding federal grand jury secrecy requirements and authorization on the matters he may speak to regarding, among other things, Volume II of the Final Report of the Special Counsel, which is not publicly available,” they added.
While the DOJ delivered Smith’s report on his charging decisions related to the Trump 2020 election interference probe, a judge blocked the release of the report’s second volume related to the classified documents investigation.
Special counsel Jack Smith speaks to the media about an indictment of Donald Trump on Aug. 1, 2023, in Washington. AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
Smith’s lawyers also requested that he receive access to the special counsel files to be able to respond to lawmakers’ questions.
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, called on Jordan to accept Smith’s terms.
“I can think of no reason to deny the American people the opportunity to hear his testimony, under oath and with questioning from Members of both parties, and to let all Americans judge for themselves the integrity of Mr. Smith’s investigations,” Raskin said in a statement.
Smith prosecuted two cases against Trump — one over his alleged mishandling of classified documents and another over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Both cases were dismissed following Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential race. Smith resigned in January after filing his investigative report on Trump.
In a rare appearance in London earlier this month, Smith pushed back on any suggestions that his team’s work on both investigations was politically motivated.
“The idea that politics would play a role in big cases like this,” he said, “it’s absolutely ludicrous, and it’s totally contrary to my experience as a prosecutor.”
