Jack Smith defends Trump probes at Senate hearing

Former special counsel Jack Smith mounted a vigorous defence of his two criminal investigations into President Donald Trump on 29 September 2026, testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee as several Republicans suggested Smith himself should face prosecution. Smith led probes into Trump's efforts to reverse the 2020 election result and his retention of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, both abandoned after Trump's 2024 election win.abcnews.com+1

The hearing matters because it is the latest congressional effort to revisit the federal cases that accused Trump of conspiring to overturn the 2020 race and of hoarding classified documents. Republicans have pushed for Smith himself to be prosecuted, while Democrats used the session to defend the investigation's legal basis and decry the firing of prosecutors who worked on it.cbsnews.com+1

What Smith said in opening statement

In his opening statement, Smith said he stands by his decisions as special counsel, including the decision to bring charges against Trump, and that he made those decisions without regard to Trump's political association, activities, beliefs or candidacy in the 2024 presidential election. He added that if asked today to prosecute a former president on the same facts, he would do so whether that president was a Republican or a Democrat.

Smith also defended his team, calling it an outrage that many members had been fired or otherwise politically targeted for their work. He said the fact that they had been targeted illegally, lost their jobs illegally and had their lives turned upside down by the Justice Department was an outrage, and that public servants should be protected.

Where the phone records came from

Smith told Senator Ted Cruz that his team sought nondisclosure orders because it had strong reason to believe Donald Trump would destroy evidence and obstruct the investigation, citing obstruction alleged in the Florida indictment and attempts to intimidate witnesses in the election case. He said the orders were submitted consistent with the law and department policy.

The basketball game perjury claim

Republicans also raised a July referral from House Judiciary Committee chairman Jim Jordan, who sent Smith to the Justice Department for potential prosecution over allegations he lied at a previous hearing about collecting the records. Smith said he stands by his testimony before the House of Representatives and will not be silenced by threats of prosecution from the president or others.

Smith told Senator Thom Tillis he regretted that people he worked with had been unfairly fired and vilified, and said his limited public statements let others misrepresent his investigations without rebuttal. He said prosecutors in the future need to learn to communicate to the outside world, because he believes strongly the investigation was done the right way. Chairman Grassley closed by saying his own probe showed the cases were infected with defects, failures and political motives, and that Smith's own words and those of his staff told the tale of rampant wrongdoing and political conduct. Grassley said his investigation will continue.