Former Special Counsel Jack Smith stated in a closed-door House Judiciary Committee deposition that his team developed "proof beyond a reasonable doubt" of President Donald Trump's criminal conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results. Smith also asserted that investigators gathered "powerful evidence" of Trump illegally hoarding classified documents at Mar-a-Lago and obstructing efforts to retrieve them. He emphasized that his decisions were based solely on facts and the law, independent of Trump's political affiliations or candidacy.
Smith was appointed in 2022 to investigate Trump's post-2020 election actions and his retention of classified documents. While his team filed charges in both cases, these were later dropped after Trump's election in 2024, due to Justice Department legal opinions prohibiting the indictment of a sitting president. The deposition, part of a Republican-led inquiry into the Trump investigations, allowed lawmakers to question Smith about these matters.
Democrats present at the deposition expressed that Smith's testimony was damaging to Trump and suggested that making it public would be "devastating." They are now calling for the full public release of Smith's testimony and his investigation report. Conversely, Republican Chairman Jim Jordan maintained that the investigations were politically motivated, despite the details emerging from Smith's account. The interview occurred amidst broader efforts by the Trump administration to scrutinize former officials involved in investigating Trump and his associates.