Former US special counsel testifies to Trump’s ‘criminal’ election plot
Jack Smith testifies before a Republican-led House panel and asserts that Donald Trump ‘wilfully broke’ laws in a bid to keep power
Former special counsel Jack Smith defended his prosecution of Donald Trump on Thursday with Republican critics in the US Congress, citing overwhelming evidence that he led a “criminal scheme” to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
Although Smith, who led two failed prosecutions against Trump, never got his day in court, the televised hearing before the House Judiciary Committee provided the opportunity he has long sought to make his case to the American public.
A veteran federal attorney and former war crimes prosecutor in The Hague, Smith told lawmakers his team of investigators had “developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in criminal activity”.
“Rather than accept his defeat in the 2020 presidential election, President Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results and prevent the lawful transfer of power,” he said.
Trump attacked Smith in a Truth Social post as he was testifying, calling him a “deranged animal, who shouldn’t be allowed to practice law” and saying Attorney General Pam Bondi is “hopefully... looking at what he’s done”.