House Republicans, led by Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, have formally asked the Justice Department to investigate former special counsel Jack Smith, alleging he made false statements under oath during December testimony about his efforts to obtain phone records belonging to lawmakers. Smith previously led two criminal investigations into Donald Trump, over alleged election interference and the handling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, both of which ended without trial following Trump's 2024 election win. The referral is significant as part of a wider push by the Trump administration to pursue officials who investigated the president.

Smith's legal team has rejected the allegations, saying he gave "truthful, responsive answers" and noting Republicans never directly asked him about the phone records issue, undermining claims that he deliberately lied. The move follows similar actions taken against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin criticised the referral as a distortion of the facts, predicting it would ultimately be rejected by the courts.