SMITH TESTIMONY: Former special counsel Jack Smith will testify before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday as part of Republicans’ push to probe his investigations into Trump’s actions related to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack and his retention of classified and sensitive documents.
The testimony will take place behind closed doors in response to a subpoena despite his offer to testify publicly.
“We are disappointed that offer was rejected, and that the American people will be denied the opportunity to hear directly from Jack on these topics,” attorney Peter Koski said after Republicans rejected Smith’s offer.
Koski said at the time that Smith looked forward to testifying to discuss his work and clear up “various misconceptions.”
Testifying publicly is common for special counsels after they complete their work and submit their report.
The probe from House Republicans comes as the president and his allies have continued to accuse the Department of Justice (DOJ) under the Biden administration of weaponizing the legal system against political foes. Critics of Trump have rejected that argument and maintained that the charges Smith brought against the president were justified and focused on holding him accountable for his actions.
The charges were ultimately dismissed once Trump won reelection.
The investigation appears set to expand after Smith’s testimony, as CNN reported the committee has made interview requests to four current and former DOJ officials who were involved in subpoenaing phone records for several members of Congress.
Republicans expressed outrage after a declassified document revealed in October that the FBI analyzed the phone records of nine members of Congress in 2023 as part of the investigation into Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
▪ The Hill: FBI argued it didn’t have probable cause for Mar-a-Lago search.
▪ Fox News: Dems push for release of hidden part of Smith’s report.
VENEZUELA BLOCKADE: Trump said he would order a blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and exiting Venezuela in the latest escalation of tensions with the South American country.
He also said in a Truth Social post that he would declare Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s regime a foreign terrorist organization, citing “theft of our Assets, and many other reasons, including Terrorism, Drug Smuggling, and Human Trafficking.”
U.S. forces seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela last week, with the administration alleging it was being used to transport “sanctioned oil” between Venezuela and Iran. The White House has steadily increased its military presence in the region during the standoff with Maduro.
“Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America,” Trump posted. “It will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before — Until such time as they return to the United States of America all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us.”
BOAT STRIKE VIDEO: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday the Pentagon will not release the full, unedited video of the military strikes conducted on an alleged drug smuggling boat in the Caribbean from early September despite calls from members of both parties to do so.
Hegseth told reporters after a briefing with senators on the military’s ongoing strikes that the decision is keeping with “long-standing” department policy.
The military carried out multiple strikes in its first attack on a boat in the Caribbean on Sept. 2. The Pentagon disclosed the first strike soon after it happened, but a subsequent strike on two survivors wasn't public until it was revealed in reporting from The Washington Post.
Hegseth and Adm. Frank Bradley, the latter of whom ordered the strikes, have held briefings with members of Congress about the incident, but Democrats and some Republicans have been pressing for the release of the video to see what happened for themselves.
Bradley is set to brief the House and Senate Armed Services committees on Wednesday, and Hegseth said the committees will view the full, unedited video of the strikes. But senators weren’t shown the video during the Tuesday closed-door briefing.
The Hill’s Alexander Bolton reports Republican senators are openly questioning Hegseth’s decision not to release the video, saying its release would address questions and prevent conspiracy theories about what happened.
▪ The Hill: Hegseth, Dems battle over release of boat strike video.
HEALTH CARE BATTLE: Tensions among Republicans are boiling over in the fight over a vote on extending the expiring ACA subsidies.
Moderates lashed out at House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) after he reversed on his pledge to allow a vote on an amendment to extend the subsidies, The Hill’s Emily Brooks, Nathaniel Weixel and Mike Lillis report.
Johnson said “good-faith” negotiations took place, but an agreement couldn’t be reached. But that infuriated moderates who had been promised a vote Friday on amending House Republican leadership’s health care plan, which doesn’t include any extension of the tax credits.
“I am p‑‑‑ed for the American people. This is absolute bulls‑‑‑,” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) said, adding that refusing a vote on the amendment is “political malpractice.”
Moderates spoke with Johnson during a tense lunch meeting filled with raised voices.
“The idea just seemed to dawn on leadership … like, in December, [and it] doesn’t actually address the crisis that is coming on Dec. 31,” said Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.).
The House Rules Committee officially closed the door on amendments to extend the subsidies Tuesday. A group of moderate Republicans put forward amendments that passed 6-4, but they were all ruled out of order, preventing them from receiving a vote on the House floor.
A path forward is uncertain as no plan seems to currently have the support necessary to get through both chambers of Congress. Time is running out to avoid the pending premium spike for millions as the subsidies expire at the end of the month and Congress is set to leave town for holiday recess at the end of the week.
▪ Politico: White House weighs risk of health care fight.
▪ The Hill: FDA head denies plan to add black box warning to COVID-19 vaccines.
