Source: Fox News
Summary
Former special counsel Jack Smith’s team obtained and reviewed text messages exchanged between Trump White House officials and 44 current and former members of Congress, according to Justice Department records. The messages were contained in White House records subpoenaed from the National Archives covering Oct. 1, 2020, through Jan. 20, 2021. The Justice Department said Smith’s investigative team “apparently bypassed” a filter team established to screen potentially privileged material before investigators accessed it. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan issued a criminal referral for Smith, arguing that he misled Congress when he stated that he did not obtain or review lawmakers’ text messages while carrying out his probes into President Donald Trump.
Our Reading
Once again, the discussion returns to a familiar question.
Lawmakers’ text messages are obtained and reviewed by the Justice Department. A filter team is bypassed. A criminal referral is issued. The process has entered a familiar phase.
Senators Grassley and Johnson release new documents. Lawmakers publicly condemn the review of their communications. Jack Smith’s team is accused of disregarding protocols. The situation unfolds like a routine.
It’s a performance we’ve seen before, with familiar actors and familiar lines.
The question remains: what’s behind the curtain?
Author: Evan Null
