House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan said he and his Republican colleagues are "'not taking anything off the table" when it comes to investigating special counsel Jack Smith, even as Smith's office moves to wrap up two federal investigations into President-elect Donald Trump.
Jordan said in an interview on CNN that Republicans "want the facts," referencing the ongoing investigations by Smith and the Justice Department, which are winding down now that Trump is projected to win the presidency.
"I assume there's going to be some report. But all we're saying is, 'preserve everything,' so we, the Congress, who have a constitutional duty to do oversight, can see everything," Jordan added, as reported by NBC News. Jordan sent Smith a letter on Friday demanding he keep all his records.
Jordan also left open the possibility of calling Smith to testify. "Maybe that's been the norm, but we want the information," he added, avoiding giving a direct answer when asked if Smith would be called before Congress.
Jordan and Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Ga., sent a letter to Smith's office on Friday asking that all records related to Smith's investigations into Trump be preserved. The letter raised concerns that documents could disappear given Trump's victory in the election. "With President Trump's decisive victory this week, we are concerned that the Office of Special Counsel may attempt to purge relevant records," it said.
The request came just before Smith moved to cancel different deadlines in the case seeking to prosecute him for seeking to subvert the 2020 election. The move answers to a longstanding policy of not prosecuting a sitting president, according to two officials who spoke with NBC News. Moreover, officials are aware that they don't have time to prosecute the two cases brought against Trump.
Given the fact that Trump won the election and will be inaugurated on January 20, Smith said in a filing, "the government respectfully requests that the Court vacate the remaining deadlines in the pretrial schedule to afford the Government time to assess this unprecedented circumstance and determine the appropriate course going forward consistent with Department of Justice policy."
On Friday, Judge Tanya Chutkan paused the case, giving Smith nearly a month to figure out the next steps.
Now Smith and his team will have to decide how to unwind the charges and whether to write a report. Members of his team were reportedly preparing to face retribution if Trump was elected, holding staff briefings on potential harassment by Trump supporters. Topics reportedly included doxing, in which a person's private information is posted online, as well as cybersecurity and stalking.
Jordan, who chairs the Judiciary Committee, may not stay in that role if Democrats win control of the House. With key races still undecided, it's unclear which party will lead the chamber.
Originally published on Lawyer Herald
