For four years under former President Joe Biden, Americans witnessed the Department of Justice‘s fall from a respected pillar of our democracy to the political enforcement arm of the Democratic Party. What was once an institution built on blind justice and equal treatment was weaponized to take out political opponents. Nothing made that clearer than the persecution of President Donald Trump by Biden’s special counsel, Jack Smith.
Smith’s political crusade against Trump has done more to shatter Americans’ trust in our justice system than any scandal in the past few decades. The nation stood in disbelief as Smith tossed aside centuries-old, fundamental principles of justice to pursue a former president with unprecedented aggression. The Biden-Harris administration looked the other way as its special counsel bent the law to implicate the leading Republican presidential candidate and its biggest rival.
Smith was not a “special counsel”; he was the Democratic National Committee’s political hitman. As special counsel, Smith oversaw two major federal prosecutions of Trump: the “classified documents” case and the “2020 election case.” In both instances, Smith bent the law at his whim to conjure up a case against Trump.
And the timing was no coincidence. As the 2024 campaign took shape and Biden faced historic disapproval, Democrats saw the writing on the wall: Trump would defeat any candidate the DNC put up. Their only solution? Weaponize the DOJ in a desperate attempt to cripple their strongest opponent.
Smith looked to deliver exactly what they wanted: politically timed indictments, unprecedented charges, and a media circus carefully engineered to smear, distract, and financially bleed Trump before voters could cast their ballots.
Smith attempted to implicate Trump by grasping at stretched-out charges of “obstructing an official proceeding” and Reconstruction-era laws of “conspiring to deprive voters of their civil rights,” which had never been used to charge a president for disputes over election procedures or legal challenges. Smith even used Trump’s legal challenges and constitutional objections to charge him with criminal conspiracy. He also attempted to charge Trump with mishandling documents under the Espionage Act despite nearly 50 years of precedent that had treated presidential records exclusively under the Presidential Records Act.
To top it all off, Smith mishandled the documents he accused Trump of mishandling. He changed the order of the documents he seized from Trump, leading to a discrepancy between the physical and scanned documents that were used as evidence.
Smith’s misconduct was not limited to Trump. He secretly conducted surveillance on Republican members of Congress, including Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), as part of Operation Arctic Frost, a clear violation of the Fourth Amendment.
Meanwhile, Democrats were given the white-glove treatment for their corruption investigations. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s illegal server, Biden’s classified document scandal, Hunter Biden’s laptop, and evidence of the Biden family’s corruption were quietly brushed aside with no indictments and no accountability.
The message to the public was unmistakable. There is a two-tiered justice system: one serving the Democrats and another for everyone else. Those who oppose the regime will be relentlessly pursued by rogue prosecutors.
No prosecutor in America should have the power to target political opponents baselessly and at will. Under Biden, Smith thought he was untouchable. That ends now, as Smith will soon face accountability for his actions.
On Dec. 3, the House Judiciary Committee issued a subpoena to Smith, demanding that he turn over all records from his prosecution of Trump and appear for a sworn deposition. The committee has demanded all investigative materials and Smith’s sworn deposition on Wednesday.
JACK SMITH SUBPOENAED FOR HOUSE GOP INQUIRY OF TRUMP INDICTMENTS AND ARCTIC FROST
A deposition, not a public hearing, is essential. In hearings, Democrats run interference and perform for the cameras. In depositions, there are no theatrics, just precise questions designed to get real answers. Smith must answer every question. No evasions. No speeches. No hiding. The people deserve answers, accountability, and the truth, and that is what the committee will deliver.
For millions of Americans, Smith’s conduct confirmed what they already feared: Our justice system is being compromised by political operatives. The committee is now working to reveal the truth, hold bad actors accountable, and restore the justice system’s principles of transparency, integrity, and fairness. This subpoena is an important first step toward this restoration.
Lance Gooden represents Texas’s 5th Congressional District in the House and is a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee.
