DOJ Emails Show Jack Smith Team Weighed Phone Record Subpoenas for Additional GOP Lawmakers
Internal Justice Department emails obtained by Fox News show prosecutors on Special Counsel Jack Smith’s team in January 2023 discussed seeking phone toll records for a broad set of Republican lawmakers, including newly identified names such as Reps. Brian Babin and Andy Biggs and then‑Rep. Lee Zeldin, now EPA administrator. In a Jan. 9, 2023 email, prosecutor Timothy Duree asked DOJ’s Public Integrity Section to concur in obtaining toll records for 16 House and Senate members and one chief of staff who had contacts with key figures in the 2020 election probe, proposing a tight window from Oct. 1, 2020, to Jan. 31, 2021. Senior prosecutor Raymond Hulser replied that, before telling DOJ leadership they would "fire off subpoenas for so many members’ tolls," he needed to make sure Smith was aware, underscoring how extraordinary the contemplated move was. Previously disclosed materials had already confirmed subpoenas for some senators’ records, but the new emails expand the map of lawmakers considered as targets while leaving unclear whether subpoenas were ultimately executed for Babin, Biggs and Zeldin. The revelations feed ongoing House and Senate Judiciary investigations into the Arctic Frost/Smith probe, as Republicans argue such subpoenas violated the Constitution’s Speech or Debate Clause while Smith continues to insist his methods were "entirely proper" under DOJ protocol.
📌 Key Facts
- Internal DOJ email chain starting Jan. 9, 2023 shows prosecutor Timothy Duree asked to seek phone toll records for 16 GOP lawmakers and one chief of staff tied to the 2020 election probe
- Newly named lawmakers on the internal list include Rep. Brian Babin (R‑Texas), Rep. Andy Biggs (R‑Ariz.), and then‑Rep. Lee Zeldin (R‑N.Y.), who now heads the EPA
- Proposed subpoenas would have covered toll records — dates, times, and numbers dialed, but not call content — for the period Oct. 1, 2020 through Jan. 31, 2021
📊 Relevant Data
The Trump-era Department of Justice secretly obtained phone records of Democratic members of Congress, including Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell, as well as 43 congressional staffers, during leak investigations in 2017 and 2018.
DOJ inspector general launches probe into secret seizure of top Democrats' phone records — PBS NewsHour
The 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act abolished national origins quotas, leading to increased immigration from Asia and Latin America, which has shifted the U.S. demographic composition, with the foreign-born population rising from 5% in 1965 to 14% by 2022.
Fifty Years On, the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act Continues to Reshape the United States — Migration Policy Institute
In key 2020 battleground states, foreign-born population percentages included 13.4% in Arizona, 10.2% in Georgia, 7.1% in Pennsylvania, 6.9% in Michigan, and 5.0% in Wisconsin, reflecting growth influenced by immigration policies since 1965.
The Foreign-Born Population in the United States: 2022 — U.S. Census Bureau
Recent immigrant surges since 2020 have boosted population growth in Republican-leaning states like Texas and Florida, potentially leading to gains of up to three additional U.S. House seats for these states in future apportionments.
Immigrant surge helped boost GOP states' population, and they may gain U.S. House seats as a result — Stateline
The Department of Justice under the Biden administration subpoenaed phone records of Republican lawmakers like Jim Jordan for periods covering more than two years in investigations related to the 2020 election and January 6.
Biden DOJ subpoenaed more than two years of Jim Jordan's phone records — Fox News
📰 Source Timeline (1)
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