Democrats on the House judiciary committee on Friday will ask Aileen Cannon, the judge who presided over the case against Donald Trump for allegedly hiding classified documents, to release the portion of special counsel Jack Smith’s report concerning his prosecution.
Smith is scheduled to appear next week for a behind-closed-door deposition with the Republican-led committee, where he may discuss his investigation into allegations that Trump took classified materials to his properties and then hid them from federal authorities. The special counsel dropped that case against Trump, as well as another concerning his meddling in the 2020 election, in the aftermath of his re-election victory last year.
Cannon earlier this year ruled that the classified documents portion of Smith’s report stay unreleased, citing ongoing proceedings against two co-defendants in the case. However attorney general Pam Bondi dropped charges against those co-defendants earlier this year, and in a motion to Cannon shared with the Guardian, the Democrats will argue that there is now no reason to keep the second portion of Smith’s report from being released.
“The rationale of this court’s prior order thus no longer applies. The criminal proceedings have been dismissed, and the House Judiciary Committee has proceeded with a formal investigation into the special counsel’s operations,” the motion will read.
Bondi has also refused to release the classified documents portion of the report, and the judiciary committee’s 19 Democrats, led by ranking member Jamie Raskin, sent her a letter on Friday pressing for its release, noting that Smith is expected to discuss the contents in his deposition set for Wednesday.
“For ten months you have had zero legal basis for withholding the report. Now you have authorized Mr Smith to testify behind closed doors about the investigation that the report memorializes – while still refusing to produce the report itself,” the letter reads.
A justice department spokesperson pointed to Cannon’s order preventing the chapter’s release, and said: “During Attorney General Bondi’s confirmation, Democrats repeatedly sought assurances that her department would follow court orders – what changed? The Department will continue to respect the rule of law and ignore these political stunts.”
It remains unclear what effect the motion from the minority party in Congress will have on Cannon. She often ruled in Trump’s favor during the criminal case, including dismissing the charges entirely in July 2024.
But by underscoring the legislative branch’s interest, the brief could influence Cannon, who has been known to consider the constitutional implications of her decisions, like an appellate judge. Democrats may press the matter further if they retake the majority in the House of Representatives after next year’s midterm elections, which would grant them the power to issue subpoenas.
The Republican judiciary committee chair, Jim Jordan, last week sent Smith a subpoena compelling his appearance for a deposition before lawmakers and congressional staff, even though a lawyer for the special counsel said he would be willing to appear for a public testimony.
The justice department released the first portion of Smith’s report shortly before Joe Biden left office, detailing his investigation into allegations that Trump broke the law by plotting to overturn his 2020 election defeat. In it, the special counsel wrote that he believed he could win a conviction against the then former president.
Hugo Lowell contributed reporting
