Former special counsel Jack Smith has asked to testify publicly before Congress after House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan requested a private, transcribed interview regarding Smith's investigations into former President Trump's handling of classified documents and his actions following the 2020 election. In a letter to Jordan and Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley, Smith's attorneys cited widespread mischaracterizations of his work and said Smith wants the chance to answer questions in an open hearing before both the House and Senate Judiciary panels, reports the Hill.
Smith's public appearance, however, would need an OK from the Justice Department. His legal team, meanwhile, notes that he'd require guidance on what he can say without violating grand-jury secrecy rules. His lawyers say that Smith is willing to discuss his investigations and prosecutions, but he wants assurances he won't face repercussions for doing so. The final report on the Mar-a-Lago case remains unreleased, and Smith would likely face questions about that investigation if he appears.
Both cases were effectively brought to a close when Trump was once more elected president, per CBS News. Smith, meanwhile, has largely avoided the public spotlight, though he recently defended his work in an interview at University College London, dismissing claims that politics influenced his team as "ludicrous" and describing his staff as apolitical public servants per the Hill. Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the Judiciary panel, has encouraged Jordan to allow Smith's public testimony, arguing that the American public deserves to hear directly from Smith and judge the investigations' integrity for themselves.
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