Jim Jordan refers Jack Smith to DOJ over alleged false statements to Congress

Jordan referred Smith to the Justice Department for possible prosecution related to closed-door testimony about whether he had obtained records of lawmakers while investigating Trump's efforts to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss. Lawyers for Smith deny the allegation and say he testified truthfully.

House Republicans are trying to file criminal charges against former special counsel Jack Smith.Representative Jim Jordan, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, sent a criminal referral for Smith to the Department of Justice Wednesday, urging the department to investigate Smith for making false statements to Congress during congressional testimony in December.At issue is a line of questioning in which Smith was asked whether he sought a search warrant for the content of text messages from members of Congress, to which Smith replied that he did not. Last week, Senator Chuck Grassley posted on X that he had “received records [from] DOJ confirming Jack Smith’s investigative team reviewed the contents of text msgs sent by 44 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.”But Grassley’s post and the questions Smith was asked were two different categories of documents, as legal experts such as Lawfare’s Anna Bower and Politico’s Kyle Cheney pointed out on X. Smith requested information from Congress on toll records, which concerned the time and date of text messages, not their content.There was a separate instance in which Smith’s team gathered text messages from the National Archives from White House phones. Some of those records included exchanges with members of Congress. But Republicans never asked about that.“[T]here’s zero ambiguity here,” Bower said. “Nothing in the Grassley docs raises any real question of perjury.”House Democrats quickly responded to Jordan’s letter Wednesday. Representative Jamie Raskin called Jordan’s letter a “baseless and vindictive criminal referral” that “deliberately distorts and misstates the facts, including what questions the Republicans actually asked at Mr. Smith’s interview.”Smith’s lawyers have also responded to Jordan’s letter with one of their own, saying his accusations are based on a “spurious claim.”“The referral is made not because Mr. Smith made a false statement, which the letter concedes, but because he did not proactively disclose information that was not responsive to a question asked,” Smith’s lawyers wrote. “During his testimony, Mr. Smith provided truthful, responsive answers and candidly discussed his work.”

Jim Jordan Refers Jack Smith To DOJ For Possible Prosecution Authored by Bryan S. Jung via PJ Media, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, has formally referred former Special Counsel Jack Smith to the Department of Justice for possible criminal prosecution, alleging that Smith made false statements under oath to Congress about the scope of his investigation into President Donald Trump. According to Fox News, in a July 22 letter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Jordan alleges that Smith intentionally misled the House Judiciary Committee during a December 2025 deposition by testifying that his office obtained only telephone toll records and did not seek or review the contents of lawmakers' text messages. Jordan contends newly released records contradict that testimony and amount to obstruction of Congress. "All individuals have an obligation to comply with a duly authorized congressional inquiry. Mr. Smith is no different," Jordan writes, accusing the former special counsel of making "intentionally false statements" designed to impede congressional oversight. The referral follows the release of documents by Republican Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, who says Smith's investigative team accessed and reviewed text messages involving 44 members of Congress from both political parties, along with current and former Trump administration officials, during an investigation known as "Operation Arctic Frost." Grassley also alleges investigators viewed some communications before a Justice Department "filter team" completed its privilege review, raising concerns about compliance with procedures intended to protect privileged information. During his December deposition, Smith testified that his office sought telephone toll records containing historical routing information - including call numbers, dates, times and durations - but not the contents of calls or text messages. Republicans argue the newly released records show Smith's team obtained and reviewed message content, directly contradicting his sworn testimony. The Justice Department confirms receipt of Jordan's criminal referral and says it will investigate any evidence of criminal conduct. No criminal charges have been filed, and the referral itself does not constitute a criminal prosecution. Smith denies wrongdoing. Last week, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) told Fox News' Sean Hannity that Smith should be "prosecuted." "What did he do with the text messages? We don't know that yet. What we do know is he absolutely read them. He absolutely shared them with members of his team and all of that illegally," Hawley alleged. "The Justice Department requires that there be screening for any members of Congress [regarding] their text messages. Jack Smith said under oath that he didn't seek the text messages of members of Congress, but in fact, we know that he did. So he lied, he violated the law, he violated the Constitution. This guy ought to be prosecuted." Democratic House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin condemns the referral as "baseless and vindictive," arguing Republicans misrepresent Smith's testimony. Raskin says committee investigators never specifically questioned Smith about presidential records or members' text messages during more than 13 hours of testimony and maintains Smith truthfully answered the questions that were asked regarding telephone toll records rather than message content. The referral marks the latest escalation in congressional Republicans' scrutiny of Smith. In November 2025, Jordan separately referred Smith's former deputy, Thomas Windom, to the Justice Department for alleged obstruction of Congress. Jordan told then-Attorney General Pam Bondi that "Congress cannot perform its oversight function if witnesses who appear before its committees corruptly refuse to provide information that the law requires them to furnish. The obstruction of a committee investigation undermines Congress's core constitutional oversight obligations." Jordan's latest referral asks the Justice Department to determine whether Smith's testimony warrants prosecution for perjury or making false statements before Congress. Tyler Durden Thu, 07/23/2026 - 10:30

Jordan, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, accused Smith of lying in his testimony before the committee in December. Smith’s lawyers denied he made any false statements.

“The Committee on the Judiciary writes to refer strong evidence that appears to show Jack Smith, former Special Counsel, knowingly made false statements during his December 17, 2025, deposition.”