{"id":2383903,"date":"2024-12-27T07:13:02","date_gmt":"2024-12-27T12:13:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/5-jack-smith-moments-that-the-gop-could-investigate\/"},"modified":"2024-12-27T07:14:04","modified_gmt":"2024-12-27T12:14:04","slug":"5-jack-smith-moments-that-the-gop-could-investigate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/5-jack-smith-moments-that-the-gop-could-investigate\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Jack Smith moments that the GOP could investigate"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2F5-jack-smith-moments-that-the-gop-could-investigate%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2383903&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>the article discusses potential investigations into special counsel Jack Smith \u200cby Republicans, \u200despecially in light of Donald\u200c TrumpS\u2063 election victory and \u200dhis ongoing legal challenges.Following Trump&#8217;s campaign promise to seek retribution against Smith for the criminal charges brought against him, Republican\u200d legislators plan to\u200b call \u2062for \u2064testimonies and \u200crecords from Smith&#8217;s office. They have \u2062expressed grievances regarding Smith&#8217;s prosecutorial conduct, implicating it in possible election interference, notably from actions taken during the final weeks of \u2062the campaign. specific points of contention include\u2062 a perceived misconduct\u200c by Smith\u2019s prosecutors,\u2063 claims\u2062 of unethical \u2064behavior by Jay \u200bBratt and J.P.Cooney, and\u2064 the \u2062use of\u2062 a Washington D.C.\u200c grand\u2062 jury \u2063for charges in Florida against Trump. The piece\u200c highlights the contentious\u200c environment as Trump and his allies seek to turn investigations back onto Smith while signaling a significant shift in political \u200cpower \u2063following the \u2062elections.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Five Jack Smith moments Republicans could investigate<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1880631\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>President-elect&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Donald Trump<\/a>&nbsp;vowed throughout his presidential campaign to seek retribution against special counsel&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/jack-smith\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jack Smith<\/a>, who brought criminal charges against Trump that Republicans widely criticized as unfair.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Trump and his Republican allies in Congress, who will have complete control of Washington beginning in January, now aim to turn the tables and investigate Smith&rsquo;s dual prosecutions of the president-elect.<\/p>\n<p>Senate and House Judiciary committee members have sent preservation notices to Smith, telling him to save his records related to Trump, a sign that the lawmakers intend to summon testimony and documents from the special counsel next year.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3239746\/trump-defenders-on-offense-department-of-justice\/\"><strong>TRUMP DEFENDERS POISED TO GO ON OFFENSE AT DOJ<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Trump&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/bidens-ag-nominee-wont-commit-to-keeping-durham-as-special-counsel\/\" title=\"Biden\u2019s AG nominee won\u2019t commit to keeping Durham as special counsel\">attorney general nominee<\/a>, Pam Bondi, said last year in a now-viral comment that &ldquo;the prosecutors will be prosecuted, the bad ones,&rdquo; signaling alignment with Trump&rsquo;s mission to punish Smith for his work.<\/p>\n<p>Smith was forced to terminate both of his cases against Trump, and his office plans to, according to reports, disband before Trump enters the White House. At the same time, Smith and his team are&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3223819\/house-republicans-warn-jack-smith-preserve-records-trump-cases\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">plotting out<\/a>&nbsp;how best to respond to the anticipated GOP inquiries.<\/p>\n<p>Below are top grievances against Smith that could become subjects of investigations.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. Smith&rsquo;s court activity during final campaign weeks<\/h2>\n<p>Smith raised eyebrows by filing a behemoth motion in court in October, a month out from the presidential election, in an attempt to defend his Jan. 6 case against Trump in the wake of the Supreme Court&rsquo;s landmark immunity ruling.<\/p>\n<p>The document contained details that Smith was deprived of presenting in a trial (since the case never moved to a trial stage), including damning and unflattering grand jury material about how Trump went about objecting to the 2020 election results.<\/p>\n<p>Former federal prosecutor Elie Honig&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/nymag.com\/intelligencer\/article\/jack-smith-october-surprise-donald-trump.html\">called<\/a>&nbsp;the move an &ldquo;October cheap shot,&rdquo; blasting Smith for defying Department of Justice policy that prohibits prosecutorial activity that could affect an election.<\/p>\n<p>Former assistant U.S. attorney Jack Goldsmith&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/10\/09\/opinion\/jack-smith-trump-biden.html\">said<\/a>&nbsp;the move was &ldquo;in clear tension with the Justice Department&rsquo;s 60-day rule&rdquo; and that Smith owed the public an explanation for how the filing did not constitute election interference.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. Bratt and Cooney<\/h2>\n<p>House Republicans have been seeking records from the DOJ for various misconduct allegations, including against two of Smith&rsquo;s prosecutors, Jay Bratt and J.P. Cooney.<\/p>\n<p>A misconduct allegation against Bratt was first raised in court by an attorney representing Walt Nauta, one of the co-defendants in the classified documents case against Trump. The attorney, Stanley Woodward, said that during a closed-door meeting, Bratt violated ethics rules by bringing up Woodward&rsquo;s application to become a judge while Bratt was trying to goad Woodward into complying with him in the Trump case. Smith has disputed the accusation.<\/p>\n<p>Cooney&rsquo;s allegation relates to a prior case when he helped prosecute Trump ally Roger Stone for lying to Congress. According to a DOJ inspector general report, Cooney wanted to impose an unusually harsh sentence on Stone, and when he was overridden, he claimed that the Trump administration gave Stone preferential treatment. The DOJ inspector general assessed in his report that this was not a &ldquo;well considered&rdquo; move by Cooney, but Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) has continued to demand more information about it.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. Using a DC grand jury in a Florida case<\/h2>\n<p>Some legal analysts, such as William Shipley, who has served as counsel for dozens of Jan. 6 defendants, have questioned why Smith used a Washington-based grand jury to bring charges against Trump in Florida over his handling of classified documents.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He was almost certain to have greater success [in Washington] in trying to <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">evade attorney-client privilege claims<\/a>, to conduct the investigation into the classified documents case that almost certainly was going to be venued in Florida,&rdquo; Shipley stated on X.<\/p>\n<p>Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee who presided over the case, ordered Smith last year to &ldquo;address the legal propriety of using an out-of-district grand jury proceeding.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Smith&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/docket\/67490069\/129\/united-states-v-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">replied<\/a>&nbsp;that he was appropriately using the Washington grand jury to investigate narrow allegations of false statements, even if it had &ldquo;incidental&rdquo; advantages in the broader classified documents case.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">4. &lsquo;Conspiracy against rights&rsquo;<\/h2>\n<p>Trump has called for Smith to be arrested, but it remains unclear what charges Smith could face for his work.<\/p>\n<p>Article III Project founder Mike Davis, a fervent Trump supporter, recently&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/mrddmia\/status\/1861550022359449787\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">teased<\/a>&nbsp;a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/federal-failures-deepen-skepticism-of-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-efforts\/\" title=\"Federal failures deepen skepticism of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts\">federal law&#038;nbsp<\/a>;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/crt\/statutes-enforced-criminal-section#:~:text=18%20U.S.C.%20%C2%A7%20241&amp;text=Section%20241%20makes%20it%20unlawful,adopted%2C%20in%20Human%20Trafficking%20prosecutions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">associated<\/a>&nbsp;with law enforcement misconduct and hate crimes, known as conspiracy against rights.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Jack Smith and his office must face severe legal, political, and financial consequences for their blatant lawfare and election interference,&rdquo; Davis said.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">5. Early underlying political motivations<\/h2>\n<p>Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), the incoming chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sen-manchin-shuts-down-build-back-better-comeback\/\" title=\"Sen. Manchin Shuts Down \u201cBuild Back Better\u201d Comeback\">long raised concerns<\/a> about politically driven investigators in authoritative roles at the FBI, including one who Grassley said helped Smith in the early stages of his investigations into Trump.<\/p>\n<p>The former longtime special agent, Timothy Thibault, who&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/327835\/fbi-official-may-have-violated-hatch-act-with-anti-trump-posts-doj-watchdog\/\">handled<\/a>&nbsp;public corruption matters in the Washington Field Office, drew attention from Grassley and other Republicans in 2022 based on whistleblower disclosures. Grassley has since tied him to Smith&rsquo;s case.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Jack Smith court filing released 2day is part of case started by former FBI official Thibault who was forced 2retire bc of extreme anti-Trump political bias my oversight revealed This case was politicized frm start Releasing info this way reeks of undeniable partisan tactics,&rdquo; Grassley recently wrote in an X post.<\/p>\n<p>Grassley also suggested in a letter last month to the DOJ that he planned to examine Thibault&rsquo;s role in Smith&rsquo;s work when the GOP takes control of the Senate.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1880631\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1880631\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Five Jack Smith incidents Republicans may probe as Trump seeks retribution against the special counsel<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":2383904,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/jack-smith-surprise.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[6203,3976,32463,47376],"class_list":["post-2383903","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-gop","tag-investigation","tag-jack-smith","tag-political-moments"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/jack-smith-surprise.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2383903","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2383903"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2383903\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2383907,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2383903\/revisions\/2383907"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2383904"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2383903"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2383903"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2383903"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}