Lawmakers to Question Jack Smith       12/17 06:08

   

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith is 
set for a closed-door interview with House Republicans on Wednesday after 
lawmakers rebuffed his offer to testify publicly about his investigations into 
President Donald Trump.

   The private deposition is part of an ongoing investigation by the 
Republican-led House Judiciary Committee into the Justice Department's criminal 
inquiries of Trump during the Biden administration. Smith was subpoenaed 
earlier this month to provide both testimony and documents, and his lawyers 
indicated that he would cooperate with the congressional demand despite having 
volunteered more than a month earlier to answer questions publicly before the 
committee.

   "We are disappointed that offer was rejected, and that the American people 
will be denied the opportunity to hear directly from Jack on these topics," one 
of his lawyers, Peter Koski, said in a statement this month. "Jack looks 
forward to meeting with the committee later this month to discuss his work and 
clarify the various misconceptions about his investigation."

   Trump told reporters at the White House that he supported the idea of an 
open hearing, saying: "I'd rather see him testify publicly. There's no way he 
can answer the questions."

   Smith is expected to discuss both of his investigations of Trump but will 
not answer questions that call for grand jury materials, which are restricted 
by law, according to a person familiar with the investigation who insisted on 
anonymity to discuss the interview. He is also expected to correct what he 
regards as mischaracterizations from Republicans about his work, including 
about his team's use of cellphone records belonging to certain GOP lawmakers, 
the person said.

   Smith was appointed in 2022 to oversee the Justice Department investigations 
into Trump's efforts to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss and his 
hoarding of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, 
Florida. Smith's team filed charges in both investigations.

   Smith abandoned the cases after Trump was elected to the White House again 
last year, citing Justice Department legal opinions that say a sitting 
president cannot be indicted.

   Republicans who control Congress have sought interviews with at least some 
individual members of Smith's team.

   In recent weeks they have seized on revelations that the team, as part of 
its investigation, had analyzed the phone records of select GOP lawmakers from 
on and around Jan. 6, 2021, when pro-Trump rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol to 
try to halt the certification of Trump's election loss to Democrat Joe Biden. 
The phone records reviewed by prosecutors included details only about the 
incoming and outgoing phone numbers and the length of the call but not the 
contents of the conversation.