Senator Chuck Grassley has invited the attorney who led investigations of President Trump to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee next month.
Special Council Jack Smith oversaw the investigation of Trump’s actions during U.S. Capitol rioting on January 6th, 2021 as well as the investigation of documents Trump took to his home in Florida after he left the White House. Smith testified before the House Judiciary Committee in January, but Grassley said over the past six months his committee has gathered a lot more information about Smith’s investigations.
“I can’t tell you how that’s going to bring us to a different position than what the House did with Jack Smith, but we’ve got a lot more material to ask questions about and to challenge him on than what the House did,” Grassley said this morning during a conference call with Iowa reporters.
Last month, Grassley said the Justice Department notified him that the special counsel’s team had “secretly obtained” messages 44 lawmakers, including Grassley, exchanged with the White House during the rioting at the Capitol. “Senate Democrats have been pushing me to get (Smith) before the committee going way back six months, I’ll bet. Maybe longer than that,” Grassley said. “And I’ve always told them we’re not going to have him until we get all the documents so we know when Jack Smith’s telling the truth or not telling the truth.”
Attorneys for Smith have sent Grassley a statement, saying Smith “followed Justice Department policies” and “looks forward to the opportunity to correct the many mischaracterizations of his tenure as special counsel.”
Both cases against Trump were dismissed after he won the 2024 election.
