Former special counsel Jack Smith’s team obtained and reviewed the contents of text messages exchanged between Trump White House officials and 44 current and former members of Congress, according to Justice Department records released by two Republican-led Senate committees.The messages were contained in White House records subpoenaed from the National Archives covering Oct.1, 2020, through Jan.
20, 2021.The Justice Department said Smith’s investigative team "apparently bypassed" a filter team established to screen potentially privileged material before investigators accessed it.House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, on Wednesday issued a criminal referral for Smith, arguing that he misled Congress when he stated that he did not obtain or review lawmakers' text messages while carrying out his probes into President Donald Trump.
The referral functions as an invitation for the Justice Department to launch an investigation into Smith's conduct.JACK SMITH THRUST BACK INTO SPOTLIGHT AT BLANCHE HEARING OVER EXPOSED SENATORS’ MESSAGESJack Smith, US special counsel, speaks during a news conference in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Aug.1, 2023.
Donald Trump has been indicted in Washington on federal charges over his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, the third politically explosive criminal prosecution of the former president as he makes his latest run for the White House.Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)Read the list of 44 lawmakers:Among the senators targeted in the probe were: Sens.
Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa; Ron Johnson, R-Wis.; John Cornyn, R-Texas; Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; Josh Hawley, R-Mo.; Mike Lee, R-Utah; Cory Booker, D-N.J.; Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss.; Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska; David Perdue, R-Ga.; Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.; Martha McSally, R-Ariz.; Rand Paul, R-Ky.; Rick Scott, R-Fla.; Rob Portman, R-Ohio; Roy Blunt, R-Mo.; Susan Collins, R-Maine; Tim Scott, R-S.C.; Tom Cot...