DOJ Briefs Congress on Jack Smith Misconduct Allegations Inquiry

Recently, the Department of Justice (DOJ) briefed members of Congress regarding its internal investigation into allegations made against Special Counsel Jack Smith’s office.

The briefing went about as we would have expected, with Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) throwing up his hands in disgust.

Jordan is clearly not accepting how this investigation played out.

Not a Real Investigation

If I am reading Jordan’s comments correctly, it would appear that the DOJ cleared the inquiry with Smith’s office before it started.

When the briefing had concluded, Jordan immediately penned a letter to Jeffrey Ragsdale of the DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, who was the DOJ official that conducted the congressional briefing.

The letter, in part, stated, “While we appreciate you confirming an open investigation into Jack Smith’s prosecutors, we are concerned that your refusal to take prompt investigative steps will allow these attorneys to evade internal accountability by leaving the Department.”

Jordan later added, “It is absurd that OPR—the Department entity charged with upholding ethical conduct would only examine allegations of prosecutorial misconduct after the subject of the allegations has approved the inquiry.

“This process does not inspire any confidence that OPR’s examination will be independent or impartial.”

Jordan has been asking Ragsdale for records for the last six months, but he keeps getting blocked by the DOJ.

Jordan believes multiple prosecutors in Smith’s office have had ethics violations, with Jay Bratt and J.P. Cooney atop that list.

Walt Nauta’s attorney, who is one of Trump’s staff at Mar-a-Lago, had accused Bratt of misconduct.

Cooney had complaints filed against him for comments he made about the Trump administration in regard to Roger Stone.

As I have stated before, I don’t take anything this DOJ does seriously, but I would suspect numerous investigations to be launched by Trump’s Attorney General regarding possible misconduct by the DOJ during this administration.