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The MeidasTouch Podcast

GOP Reps Lose It as Jack Smith Hearing Backfires

23 Jan 2026

Transcription

Chapter 1: What happened during the GOP hearing with Jack Smith?

0.031 - 8.302 Ben Meiselas

The MAGA Republican hearing with Special Counsel Jack Smith just blew up in Donald Trump and MAGA's face.

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8.742 - 30.549 Ben Meiselas

We covered the entire Special Counsel Jack Smith hearing live here on the Midas Touch Network, but I want to utilize this video to give you the highlights of what I thought were the most important moments where Special Counsel Jack Smith just stuck the dagger into Donald Trump and these MAGA Republicans and they do not know what to do.

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30.589 - 46.524 Ben Meiselas

So let's just cover what happened in case you weren't able to watch the full live. Here are some of the highlights. Special Counsel Jack Smith began with an opening statement where he talks about why he stands by his decision as special counsel to bring the charges that he did against Donald Trump.

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46.904 - 58.995 Ben Meiselas

And if he had the opportunity to do it again, whether it was against a Democrat or a Republican who engaged in the same conduct, he would do it again because crimes were committed by Donald Trump. Here, play this clip.

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Chapter 2: What were the main highlights of Jack Smith's testimony?

58.975 - 77.71 Jack Smith

As I testify before the committee today, I want to be clear. I stand by my decisions as special counsel, including the decision to bring charges against President Trump. Our investigation developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in criminal activity.

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78.837 - 98.88 Jack Smith

If asked whether to prosecute a former president based on the same facts today, I would do so regardless of whether that president was a Democrat or a Republican. No one, no one should be above the law in this country and the law required that he be held to account. So that is what I did.

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100.261 - 111.424 Jack Smith

To have done otherwise on the facts of these cases would have been to shirk my duties as a prosecutor and as a public servant. of which I had no intention of doing.

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111.805 - 136.3 Ben Meiselas

Now, the MAGA Republicans prevented special counsel Jack Smith from talking about the Mar-a-Lago document case where Donald Trump concealed highly sensitive classified information at Mar-a-Lago because Judge Eileen Cannon is refusing to unseal the records and the DOJ said that if Jack Smith talks anything, talks about it any more than just like basic information,

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136.28 - 146.32 Ben Meiselas

Here's what I did without getting into any of the details that she would prosecute him. So here's what Jack Smith says about the Mar-a-Lago document case. Here, play this clip.

146.541 - 172.777 Jack Smith

Other than accept his defeat in the 2020 election, President Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results and prevent the lawful transfer of power. After leaving office in January of 21, President Trump illegally kept classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago social club and repeatedly tried to obstruct justice to conceal his continued retention of those documents.

172.797 - 178.909 Jack Smith

Highly sensitive national security information was held in a ballroom and a bathroom.

178.973 - 195.835 Ben Meiselas

Then special counsel Jack Smith says, I just want to let everybody know I'm not going to be intimidated by Donald Trump. I am not going to be intimidated by these threats. I am someone of high integrity and they could threaten me all they want. I'm not backing down.

195.815 - 220.354 Unknown

Those people who try to hold him accountable. In August 2023, right after your office indicted him, President Trump shared that playbook on social media for everyone to see. He wrote, if you go after me, I'm coming for you. Trump has said that you, Mr. Smith, should be investigated and put in prison. He called you a disgrace to humanity, a radical left Marxist, a criminal.

Chapter 3: How did Jack Smith justify his charges against Donald Trump?

248.232 - 270.959 Jack Smith

I think these statements are also made as a warning to others what will happen if they stand up And I am, as I say, I'm not gonna be intimidated. We did our work pursuant to department policy. We followed the facts and we followed the law and that process resulted in proof beyond a reasonable doubt that he committed serious crimes.

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271.359 - 274.506 Jack Smith

I'm not gonna pretend that didn't happen because he's threatening me.

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274.486 - 296.73 Ben Meiselas

More from special counsel Jack Smith here. And he talks about how Donald Trump pardoning or granting clemency to these January 6th insurrectionists. It was obvious that these people were going to commit more crimes. They're criminals. They're bad people. And so Jack Smith says it's reasonable to believe that they'll commit more crimes than they already are. Here, play this clip.

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296.71 - 308.43 Unknown

As a prosecutor, can you describe why these pardons make our communities less safe and undermine our criminal legal system more broadly?

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313.68 - 333.119 Jack Smith

The people who assaulted police officers and were convicted after trial In my view, and I think in the view of the judges who sentenced them to prison, are dangerous to their community. As you've mentioned, some of these people have already committed crimes against their communities again.

333.299 - 349.047 Jack Smith

And I think all of us, if we're reasonable, know that there's going to be more crimes committed by these people in the future. I do not understand why you would mass pardon people who assaulted police officers. I don't get it.

349.508 - 374.737 Ben Meiselas

I never will. Then you have Democratic Congress member Jared Moskowitz talking about what hypocrites the MAGA Republicans are for now trying to pretend like January 6th You know, it was just this peaceful day. And what actually happened on January 6th? And so Congress member Moskowitz reads the statements that were made on or around January 6th by Jim Jordan and Ted Cruz and Chip Roy and others.

374.818 - 376.06 Ben Meiselas

Here, play this clip.

376.04 - 393.077 Jared Moskowitz

I hate talking about the present. But you know what? Let's talk about the past real quick. Here are some quotes, because I heard one of my colleagues call you a hypocrite. Here are some quotes from my colleagues. Chairman Jordan, right after January 6th, stop the violence, support Capitol Police. Ted Cruz, those storming the Capitol need to stop right now.

Chapter 4: What details were revealed about the Mar-a-Lago document case?

544.267 - 572.444 Unknown

I'm a member of the new select committee to actually examine, actually examine what happened that day. And I can tell you, gentlemen, that the fault does not lie with Donald Trump. It lies with Yogananda Pittman and the U.S. Capitol leadership team. We know, we know. They had the intelligence and there was going to be a high propensity for violence that day. Claim my time, yeah.

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572.464 - 580.738 Unknown

You will be in order. The time belongs to the gentleman from Texas. We've had some disruptions already. We don't need that. Let the gentleman, the gentleman may continue.

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580.758 - 589.191 Ben Meiselas

Then you have Democratic Congress member Ross telling MAGA Republican Jim Jordan, let's enter your statements into the record, please play this clip.

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589.171 - 611.637 Unknown

And the second one is a unanimous consent to enter into their record an interview from March 2024 on the Capitol Hill show in which you called on those who attacked the Capitol on January 6th to be, quote, held accountable because, quote, that's the way our system does work and should work. Objection.

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612.037 - 615.821 Ben Meiselas

Thank you very much. You have Democratic Congress member Ballant here. Let's play it.

616.041 - 640.484 Unknown

Trump has said that you, Mr. Smith, should be investigated and put in prison. He called you a disgrace to humanity, a radical left Marxist, a criminal. In fact, Trump has used the words deranged Jack Smith 185 times on Truth Social. How do you think that these statements have impacted you, your staff, and your investigation?

644.128 - 670.139 Jack Smith

With respect to me, I think the reports, I'm sorry, the statements are meant to intimidate me. I will not be intimidated. I think these statements are also made as a warning to others what will happen if they stand up And I am, as I say, I'm not gonna be intimidated. We did our work pursuant to department policy. We followed the facts and we followed the law.

670.66 - 680.753 Jack Smith

And that process resulted in proof beyond a reasonable doubt that he committed serious crimes. I'm not gonna pretend that didn't happen because he's threatening me.

680.773 - 688.703 Unknown

And Mr. Smith, do you believe that President Trump's Department of Justice will find some way to indict you?

Chapter 5: How did Jack Smith respond to intimidation from Trump and his allies?

877.733 - 902.83 Jack Smith

speech that is used to facilitate a crime, a fraud crime in particular, is not protected under the First Amendment. The Supreme Court precedent on that is clear. This is an issue that we litigated before the district court, and the district court ruled, as I just stated, that it is not in fact protected. And the case law is perfectly clear on this, right? All frauds are perpetrated by speech.

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902.911 - 925.915 Jack Smith

Right? Yes. All conspiracies are perpetrated by speech. So just because your criminal conduct is brigaded with speech doesn't somehow mean you've got a First Amendment defense against trying to overthrow the government. I mean, the people who attacked the police officers on January 6th were chanting, hang Mike Pence. I suppose that was political speech or they were saying, stop the steal.

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926.416 - 932.462 Jack Smith

Does that mean they've got a First Amendment defense to violent assault against the officers? It does not.

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932.813 - 936.919 Ben Meiselas

Then you have Congress member Eric Swalwell, who's also running for governor of California.

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936.939 - 962.736 Jack Smith

Here's what he said. Mr. Smith, I want you to have the utmost confidence in what you did. You did everything right. Harry Dunn, Danny Hodges, Sergeant Cano, Mike Fanone, they did everything right. These guys, my Republican colleagues, are a joke. They're wrong. History will harshly judge them. So I want you to lean in today. You have nothing to be ashamed of. You did everything right, sir.

963.847 - 985.23 Jack Smith

And I am so, these guys are so lucky they're not under oath, because they would have to tell you what they really think of Trump. They call him crooked. They call him cruel. They call him a scumbag. I've heard you all say it. You're lucky you're not under Trump, but when the lights go on and the cameras are on, you're tiny, you're small, you shrink.

986.915 - 1004.757 Jack Smith

Everyone remembers Matt Gaetz coming over here after a committee hearing. He would laugh at how stupid he thought Trump was. This is all a show. And Mr. Smith, you're just the latest act that they've brought in. But they can't erase what happened on January 6th because we saw it with our own eyes.

1005.438 - 1020.448 Ben Meiselas

Democratic Congress member Cohen to Jack Smith, let's play it. Did Merrick Garland ever pressure you to bring an indictment or to do anything in your investigation? No. Did anybody else in the administration, President Biden, Vice President Harris, etc.

1020.106 - 1020.448 Ted Lieu

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