House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik is requesting an ethics investigation into special counsel Jack Smith, alleging interference in the 2024 presidential election. Stefanik (R-NY) penned a letter to the Justice Department’s Office of Professional Responsibility on Tuesday, pressing for a review of Smith’s management of the election case involving President Trump.
Stefanik listed a series of complaints, accusing Smith of improperly attempting to hasten a trial and filing court documents in the 2020 election case while it was on hold.
In December, Smith's team urged the Supreme Court to bypass the appeals courts and accelerate the consideration of Trump's appeal regarding presidential immunity. Smith argued that the public interest in a prompt resolution of this case favors an immediate, definitive decision by the high court. However, the Supreme Court dismissed Smith's request, leading to the trial's scheduled start date, initially set for March 4.
“The only way to reconcile Jack Smith’s filings is to recognize that his obvious goal was not to seek justice and the neutral application of the law, but rather to get President Trump – and get him before November,” Stefanik explained.
Stefanik emphasized a provision in the DOJ Manual which states that prosecutors “may never select the timing of any action… for the purpose of affecting any election, or for the purpose of giving an advantage or disadvantage to any candidate or political party.”
Labeling him “Biden special counsel Jack Smith,” Stefanik also echoed a complaint from Trump’s legal team regarding how Smith’s office filed court documents in the 2020 election case after US District Judge Tanya Chutkan halted proceedings amid the immunity appeal. Earlier this year, Chutkan dismissed a motion to hold Smith in contempt of court for filing the documents during the pause.
