Rachel Maddow

In nearly five hours of testimony, it's not at all clear that Republicans did score any of the points they were hoping for.

A little bit of a look at how Jack Smith responded to some of their best efforts to try to get him just after the break.

The U.S.

military deployed on the streets of America.

Whole communities targeted for removal.

And when accountability finally came knocking, the burn order to cover it all up.

A stain on this country, one that we said we would never repeat.

Rachel Meadow presents Burn Order.

California Republican Brandon Gill thought that he had him.

Not only did Jack Smith scoop up the House Speaker's phone records, he did it in secret with a non-disclosure order and for this ridiculous reason that Kevin McCarthy was a flight risk.

Oh, come on, this is my time.

Don't interrupt me.

This has to be done in a very specific way.

I said California, Texas Congressman.

There's a very good reason why Texas Congressman Brandon Gill did not want to let Jack Smith finish that answer.

Because what Jack Smith was starting to say there, what in fact he had spelled out in his deposition before this same committee last month, is that he never claimed House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was a flight risk.

Rather, the boilerplate statutory language that Smith's team gave to a judge to sign, that includes four different reasons why a judge might agree to a nondisclosure order about somebody having their phone records subpoenaed.

And one of those four reasons is that the person might pose a flight risk.

But there are three other reasons, including stuff like what?

Maybe disclosing the subpoena could cause somebody to destroy or tamper with evidence, or it could cause a potential witness to be intimidated.