Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) invited former special counsel Jack Smith to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee over his handling of Operation Arctic Frost.
Smith has become one of the foremost targets of Republicans after seizing the government trifecta following his prosecution of President Donald Trump. Upon his request, Smith was invited by Grassley to testify in front of the Judiciary Committee, now scheduled for Sept. 22.
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“In the process of a deeply flawed, weaponized investigation, Jack Smith subpoenaed phone toll records from a dozen senators, scooped up text messages from over 40 members of Congress, and subpoenaed the private communications and financial records of hundreds of other Republican entities and individuals,” Grassley said in a statement.
“He needs to answer directly to Congress for his actions,” he added. “Smith has requested to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, and our committee looks forward to hearing from him as part of Congress’ investigation into Arctic Frost and his time as Special Counsel. Smith must be honest and forthcoming in his answers, because the American people deserve nothing less than full transparency and accountability.”
Grassley’s statement carries his recent bitterness after revealing that Smith obtained text messages from him and 44 other members of Congress sent to White House officials around the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Some of the others whose texts were obtained included Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Tom Cotton (R-AR).
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Smith first requested to publicly testify in a letter dated Nov. 7, with his lawyers citing “continued speculation and mischaracterizations about his work as Special Counsel.”
“Mr. Smith is fully committed to providing information about the work of the Special Counsel’s Office, and we are committed to working with you to provide the public an opportunity to hear directly from Mr. Smith regarding his work,” his attorneys wrote.
