❓WHAT HAPPENED: Newly released Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) files revealed that former Special Counsel Jack Smith issued nearly 200 subpoenas targeting Republican organizations, officials, and donors as part of a Justice Department investigation under the Biden government.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Former Special Counsel Jack Smith, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg, and Republican organizations, including Turning Point USA (TPUSA) and the Republican Attorneys General Association.
📍WHEN & WHERE: The subpoenas were issued during Smith’s “Arctic Frost” probe; FBI files were made public on Wednesday through Sen. Grassley’s office.
💬KEY QUOTE: “Politically motivated conduct,” said Jim Jordan in his letter demanding Smith testify before Congress.
🎯IMPACT: Congressional Republicans have called for investigations and the impeachment of Judge Boasberg, citing concerns of abuse of investigative power under the Biden Justice Department.
Republican lawmakers in the House of Representatives are now working to pursue the impeachment of U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg, who—along with his colleague U.S. District Court Judge Beryl Howell—issued non-disclosure orders preventing public knowledge of nearly 200 subpoenas targeting Republican organizations, officials, and donors filed by former Special Counsel Jack Smith. Late Thursday evening, Representative Brandon Gill (R-TX) announced he is drafting articles of impeachment against Boasberg. Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), likewise, signalled he would pursue impeachment. It is unclear whether Judge Howell will also face impeachment.
The National Pulse reported on Wednesday that Jack Smith issued 197 subpoenas targeting over 430 Republican groups and individuals as part of the Arctic Frost probe. Senator. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) described the investigation as a “fishing expedition” aimed at improperly scrutinizing the Republican political apparatus. Among the subpoenas were requests for telecom carriers to provide Smith’s team with cellular data for around a dozen Republican lawmakers, with Boasberg and Howell’s orders preventing the companies from disclosing the requests.
“Radical activist judge James Boasberg continues to weaponize his judicial authority and target his political opponents,” Rep. Gill said in a statement. “Judge Boasberg facilitated the egregious Arctic Frost scandal, where he equipped the Biden DOJ to spy on Republican senators. His lack of integrity makes him clearly unfit for the gavel.” Boasberg, appointed by former President Barack Obama and now serving as chief judge in Washington, D.C., has faced prior criticism for rulings that impacted Trump administration policies.
Troublingly, under the guise of investigating the alleged involvement of President Trump and several Republican lawmakers in January 6, Jack Smith—enabled by judges Boasberg and Howell—appears to have, in reality, laid the groundwork for an unprecedented, weaponized, and partisan criminal probe aimed at crippling the Republican Party. Financial institutions and political vendors for Trump-aligned PACs were targeted with subpoenas, suggesting that Smith sought to establish monetary links between hundreds of consulting firms, advisors, and nonprofits that he could subsequently prosecute—presumably under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act—if he had secured a conviction against Trump.
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