Rep. Jim Jordan, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, asked the Justice Department late Wednesday to consider prosecuting special counsel Jack Smith, who previously prosecuted President Donald Trump, according to a letter sent to the Justice Department obtained by CNN.
Jordan claims Smith misled the committee while testifying behind closed doors late last year. Jordan’s concerns are largely based on Smith’s team of prosecutors obtaining text messages between Trump administration officials and members of Congress as part of their investigation into Trump’s actions and the response of his top aides to his 2020 election defeat, according to a criminal referral letter Jordan sent to the Justice Department.
The Justice Department (at the time Trump’s top lawyer, Todd Blanche, who now heads the department and is on the verge of Senate confirmation as attorney general) has already responded that it “will investigate all evidence of criminal conduct,” according to a spokesman. A spokesman confirmed the department received Jordan’s referral.
Jordan’s criminal prosecution of Smith and the Justice Department’s swift response fulfill a long-standing Republican desire to investigate and potentially prosecute Smith.
Trump himself has called for Smith to be jailed, especially after he won criminal charges brought against him by Smith and returned to the presidency last year.
The Justice Department regularly receives information from Congress about criminal offenses and then decides whether it merits charges or even investigation. The current Republican-led Congress has asked the Justice Department to investigate others involved in the Smith investigation who have not been charged.
But the current composition of the Justice Department and the President’s known intentions to prosecute Smith and rewrite his investigation and public records from January 6, 2021, make Jordan’s move a marked escalation.
Ranking Member Jamie Raskin criticized the GOP decision, saying in a statement: “This case, if it ever goes before a judge, will be laughed out of court. But success on the merits is not the goal. It is intended to bother Jack Smith.”
The Maryland Democrat added: “This is intended to whitewash their own participation in the scheme to overturn our elections.”
CNN has reached out to Smith’s representatives.
Hannah Rabinowitz contributed to this report.