Former special counsel Jack Smith, who led the federal criminal cases against President Donald Trump during the Biden administration, has kicked off what is expected to be an hourslong closed-door deposition with members of the House Judiciary Committee.

In his opening statement to lawmakers, portions of which were obtained by Blue Light News, Smith defended his findings of allegations that that Trump mishandled classified documents and sought to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

“The decision to bring charges against President Trump was mine, but the basis for those charges rests entirely with President Trump and his actions, as alleged in the indictments returned by grand juries in two different districts,” said Smith, according to a copy of portions of that statement.

He maintained that this team found evidence to prove “beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and to prevent the lawful transfer of power.”

Smith also said his team found “powerful evidence” in the classified documents case and alleged that the president “repeatedly tried to obstruct justice.”

“I made my decisions in the investigation without regard to President Trump’s political association, activities, beliefs, or candidacy in the 2024 presidential election,” Smith said in his statement. “We took actions based on what the facts and the law required — the very lesson I learned early in my career as a prosecutor.”

He added that he would have made the same decision if Trump had been a Democrat or a Republican — a nod to the GOP members of the committee who believe Smith was pursuing a partisan witch hunt against the president. Their fury has only intensified in the wake of recent revelations Smith secretly obtained phone records of at least eight Republican senators in his election interference probe.

Smith also defended that decision to request lawmakers’ phone data, for which Smith’s team did not receive the content of the calls.

“Exploiting that violence, President Trump and his associates tried to call Members of Congress in furtherance of their criminal scheme, urging them to further delay certification of the 2020 election,” Smith said. “I didn’t choose those Members; President Trump did.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In the wake of repeated calls for his prosecution from Republicans and Trump himself, Smith faces unique political and legal risks. His testimony is hamstrung by grand jury secrecy rules and Justice Department policy — as well as an order from a federal judge in Florida that the second volume of his report surrounding the classified documents case remain under seal.

Smith, however, is hoping to defend his record as a career prosecutor from Republican allegations that he shepherded a weaponization of the Justice Department against conservatives — to the extent he could.

Walking into the deposition room, Smith did not answer shouted questions from reporters.

“The hunters become the hunted, huh?” someone shouted from the rowdy crowd swarming the former prosecutor.

Smith is represented by the big law giant Covington & Burling, which was sanctioned by the Trump administration earlier this year after revelations that it was providing free legal services to Smith. The move suspended security clearances for lawyers at the firm.

“In today testifying before this committee, Jack is showing tremendous courage in light of the remarkable and unprecedented retribution campaign against him by this administration and this White House,” one of Smith’s attorneys, Lanny Breuer, told reporters. “Let’s be clear: Jack Smith, a career prosecutor, conducted this investigation based on the facts and based on the law and nothing more.”

Breuer said his client “looks forward” to answering questions surrounding both of the cases he oversaw: the classified documents case and the case surrounding Trump’s efforts to subvert the results of the 2020 election. Smith was forced to drop both cases after Trump’s electoral victory in 2024, citing Justice Department policy against prosecuting a sitting president.

A number of lawmakers filed into the deposition room Wednesday to watch the questioning — among them Reps. Scott Fitzgerald (R-Wis.), Ben Cline (R-Va.), Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) and Hank Johnson (D-Ga.). House Judiciary Committee chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and ranking member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) are also attending.

Moskowitz, leaving the room early in the deposition, said the interview had been “boring.”

Smith had been requesting a public forum for his testimony to set the record straight about the scope of his work and the cases he would have pursued against Trump.

Jordan, however, declined that request, instead opting for a deposition behind closed doors.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania said Wednesday he is the first Republican to join a Democratic effort to force a House vote on a straight three-year extension of the enhanced Obamacare tax credits that will expire Dec. 31.

The move comes after House GOP leaders rejected attempts by Fitzpatrick and other Republican moderates to seek a floor vote on extending the subsidies used by more than 20 million Americans. Fitzpatrick said in a late-night House Rules Committee meeting Tuesday that “the only thing worse than a clean extension … would be expiration, and I would make that decision.”

The discharge petition filed by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries currently has 214 signatures, all from Democrats. Three other Republicans besides Fitzpatrick would need to sign to push it forward. Several are considering joining Fitzpatrick and signing the petition this morning, according to two people granted anonymity to describe private discussions.

Under House rules, no vote could happen until next month — after the subsidies expire — even if the petition is completed Wednesday.

“We have worked for months to craft a two-party solution to address these expiring healthcare credits,” Fitzpatrick said in a statement Wednesday. “Our only request was a Floor vote on this compromise, so that the American People’s voice could be heard on this issue. That request was rejected. … Unfortunately, it is House leadership themselves that have forced this outcome.”

Jack Smith wants to make his case against Donald Trump to Congress — but he’s walking into a political and legal minefield.

The Biden-era special counsel who brought the first and only federal criminal charges ever leveled against a former president is set to testify Wednesday morning to members of House Judiciary.

The stakes are high.

Republicans are looking to portray Smith as a tool of a weaponized Justice Department — an allegation Republicans have brandished amid recent revelations Smith obtained phone records of at least eight GOP senators as part of his probe into Trump’s efforts to subvert the 2020 election results.

“What they did all along, everything was wrong … a lot of things that were just not normal course of investigation or prosecution,” Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) told Blue Light News. “If he comes in and doesn’t answer questions, that’s going to be a problem.”

Judiciary Republican Troy Nehls of Texas, when asked about his ideal outcome for Smith’s deposition, didn’t hold back.

“Jack Smith should be in jail — if not prison,” he said. “He’s a crook … and he needs to be held accountable for all his games that he played.”

Democrats, meanwhile, are eager for more information about the investigations Smith had to abandon after Trump won reelection in 2024, bowing to the fact that sitting presidents cannot face federal charges while in office. Smith was investigating Trump for election subversion attempts and mishandling classified documents.

“We want to hear exactly what he found, and what he did,” said Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the top House Judiciary Democrat.

Peter Koski, a former top DOJ official and a member of Smith’s legal team, said in a statement his client is “looking forward to answering the committee’s questions, sharing the legal basis for his investigative steps, and discussing the evidence of President Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his unlawful possession of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.”

But Smith is bound by complex secrecy rules that limit what he is able to share with lawmakers.

Raskin maintains Smith’s task Wednesday is simple: “He just needs to come and tell the truth.”

What else we’re watching:   

— Decision day for health care: The House will vote Wednesday on the GOP health care package without an Affordable Care Act subsidy extension — and without any of the amendments moderates were seeking. Members are set to vote on the rule Wednesday morning, with the final vote on the bill expected Wednesday afternoon (assuming the rule is adopted).

The Problem Solvers will also huddle with rank-and-file senators Wednesday to discuss a framework that includes an ACA extension and other health policy items for January.

— Carr in the hot seat: FCC Chair Brendan Carr’s appearance before Senate Commerce Wednesday will be a telling moment for Republicans as GOP committee members balance concerns over free speech with their reluctance to criticize the administration.

Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) told reporters Tuesday he plans to use the FCC oversight hearing to explore free speech concerns, though it’s unclear how far most Republicans on the committee will go in relitigating Carr’s threats against TV show host Jimmy Kimmel earlier this year.

Kyle Cheney, Meredith Lee Hill, Mia McCarthy and John Hendel contributed to this report.