Congress releases Jack Smith’s testimony about Trump prosecutions

The US Congress has released a transcript of former special counsel Jack Smith's testimony in which he defended his decision to lead two now-defunct criminal investigations into Donald Trump.

The transcript, released on New Year's Eve by the House Judiciary Committee, runs to 255 pages. It features questions from lawmakers as well as Smith's strong defense of efforts to prosecute Trump for illegally storing classified documents after leaving office, as well as his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Trump pleaded not guilty in both cases, and the prosecution ended after his re-election.

Back in office, Trump demanded an investigation into the officials who brought criminal charges against him.

The release also includes video of Smith's nearly eight-hour testimony that took place behind closed doors earlier this month.

“The decision to bring charges against President Trump was mine, but the basis for these charges lies entirely with President Trump and his actions,” Smith told lawmakers at the start of his testimony.

He claims his investigation, launched under President Joe Biden, “has established evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 election and prevent the lawful transition of power.”

He adds that his team “also developed compelling evidence that showed President Trump knowingly maintained highly classified documents after leaving office in January 2021, storing them in his social club, including in his ballroom and bathroom.”

He adds that Trump “has repeatedly attempted to obstruct justice to conceal his continued possession of these documents.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a message from the BBC on Wednesday seeking comment.

Trump said after his indictment in the secret documents case that it was a “dark day for the United States of America.” The case was dismissed by a Florida judge in 2024.

The president has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, storming of the Capitol. In 2024 he stated that there was “absolutely nothing wrong” and it was “the day of love.” Trump pardons more than 1,500 Capitol riot defendants after taking office.

The Congressional interview with Smith took place on December 17.

In 2022, then-Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Smith as special counsel to investigate Trump's efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to Joe Biden.

Before Trump returned to office in January, Smith wrote a report concluding there was enough evidence to charge Trump in both investigations.

Democrats who questioned Smith during his testimony focused, among other things, on Trump's demands for retribution. The Trump administration fired Smith and his team.

“I have no doubt that the President wants to seek retribution against me,” Smith said, later adding that the Justice Department now “wants to seek retribution against everyone who worked on cases against President Trump.”

Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., asked Smith if he believed Trump directed House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan to subpoena him to testify, to which Smith said he didn't know.

“I'm here in good faith,” he said.

Smith also spoke about the call records his team had requested for some members of Congress, prompting outrage from some Republican senators.

Smith said such requests are standard and critical to finding out how the White House communicated with lawmakers before and on Jan. 6, 2021.

He said his team used the records to determine which members of Trump's inner circle were contacting Republican lawmakers and which senators the president allegedly tried to contact on the day of the attack on the Capitol.

Smith said the records do not include the contents of calls or text messages, but rather “when the call started, when the call ended… and who the call was from.”

Call recordings and interviews allowed investigators to piece together how the White House tried to stop lawmakers from certifying the 2020 election results, Smith said.

“Sometimes the messages were relevant to us to show that people were telling Donald Trump that what he was saying was not true,” Smith told the committee.

After the October 2024 indictment against Trump laid out his alleged attempts to contact lawmakers, Trump said it was “an attempt to revive a dead witch hunt” and “simply an attempt to interfere” in the 2024 presidential election.