Jack Smith's Testimony Released: Inside the Trump Prosecution Files

The Documents Drop

Washington woke up Thursday to 317 pages of previously sealed testimony from special counsel Jack Smith, the prosecutor who spent two years building criminal cases against former President Donald J. Trump. By 9:03 a.m., every major network’s chyron screamed the same alert: “Testimony Unsealed.”

What the Papers Actually Say

The transcripts, taken before a grand jury in the District of Columbia last spring, flesh out the anatomy of two federal probes—one on the hoarding of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, the other on efforts to subvert the 2020 election.

Key Takeaways

• Smith’s team believed Trump “personally reviewed” at least 21 documents marked classified, contradicting claims the material was merely “brought along by staff.”
• FBI agents described a “stand-down” order from Trump’s valet, Walt Nauta, to move boxes out of a storage room the day before investigators arrived with a subpoena.
• Prosecutors considered charging Trump under the Espionage Act but worried a jury might view the statute as “antiquated.”
• The election-interference probe zeroed in on a December 18, 2020, Oval Office meeting where Trump allegedly endorsed seizing voting machines—a plan witnesses said was “immediately shot down” by White House counsel.

The Political Tremor

Within minutes of the release, Trump’s campaign blasted out a fundraising email titled “WITCH HUNT UNMASKED,” while Democrats seized on the details to revive calls for barring the former president from future office under the 14th Amendment.

“These transcripts confirm what we long suspected: the former president knew exactly what he possessed and chose to obstruct at every turn,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) told reporters outside the Capitol.

What Happens Next

Smith’s office declined to comment, but people familiar with the investigation say the special counsel is unlikely to bring new federal charges before the November election. Meanwhile, Trump’s legal team is preparing to argue presidential immunity in the Supreme Court next month, a bid that could erase the election case altogether.