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Jack Smith Defends Trump Probes as GOP Attacks Authority

By Drooid · Sep 30, 2026, 10:23 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Jack Smith Testifies

Former special counsel Jack Smith testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee defending his investigations of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Smith said his probes proved Trump committed serious crimes in the classified-documents and election cases.
Chuck Grassley and Eric Schmitt accused Smith of abusing authority by subpoenaing GOP phone and financial records.
Democratic Senator Dick Durbin defended Smith, calling Republican attacks a smokescreen that diverts from Trump’s wrongdoing.

Summary

Senator Blackburn Sues

Senator Marsha Blackburn filed a civil-rights lawsuit against Jack Smith and the DOJ.
The complaint alleges Smith’s appointment violated the Constitution’s Appointments Clause.
Blackburn seeks a declaration that the subpoena of her Verizon records breached the Speech or Debate Clause.
The complaint asks the court to order the DOJ to destroy any remaining copies of her legislative materials.

History

Historical Context

Watergate began with the June 17 1972 break-in at the DNC headquarters, led to 197-day Senate hearings that produced 1,800 pages of transcripts and forced President Nixon’s August 9 1974 resignation, prompting sweeping campaign-finance reforms. Decades later, Special Counsel Jack Smith’s 2023-24 investigations of former President Donald Trump face Senate Judiciary oversight and Republican claims of subpoena overreach, echoing the constitutional clash of Watergate.

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Jack Smith Testifies

Former special counsel Jack Smith testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee defending his investigations of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Smith said his probes proved Trump committed serious crimes in the classified-documents and election cases.
Chuck Grassley and Eric Schmitt accused Smith of abusing authority by subpoenaing GOP phone and financial records.
Democratic Senator Dick Durbin defended Smith, calling Republican attacks a smokescreen that diverts from Trump’s wrongdoing.

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