Rep. Lieu Questions Jack Smith on Trump Investigations and DOJ Conduct

Rule of Law and Congressional Subpoenas

• ⚖️ The House Judiciary Committee is responsible for upholding the rule of law, but its chairman has ignored a bipartisan congressional subpoena, hindering testimony and damaging the rule of law.
• 🏛️ Republicans are accused of being scared to discuss the Epstein files, preferring to focus on Donald Trump's alleged criminality.

Allegations of Political Retribution

• 🚫 Representative Lieu questioned Special Counsel Jack Smith regarding any directives from the Biden administration or White House to seek retribution against political opponents.
• ❌ Smith confirmed that President Biden, or anyone in the White House, never directed him to seek retribution, write social media posts targeting individuals, or take any prosecutory steps.

Trump's Alleged Weaponization of DOJ

• 🎯 Donald Trump is accused of weaponizing the Department of Justice to target political opponents, citing his calls for the prosecution of New York Attorney General Tish James.
• 🔍 Trump allegedly initiated a sham investigation into Tish James, firing his own US Attorney when no indictments were secured.
• 📉 Similarly, Trump's DOJ reportedly investigated Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for refusing to bend to Trump's will on interest rates.

Accountability and the Law

• 🧑‍⚖️ Regarding phone records, Lieu asserted that no one is above the law, including members of Congress and the Speaker of the House.
• 📜 The speech and debate clause does not protect actions like stealing an election, which is considered a crime, not a legislative act.
• ✅ Lieu expressed satisfaction that Trump was lawfully indicted, with multiple grand juries securing those indictments.