The Jack Smith Senate hearing on Tuesday puts the former special counsel in front of Republican senators who say he abused his power while investigating Donald Trump. Smith, who brought two federal cases against Trump that have since been dismissed, is set to answer questions from the Senate Judiciary Committee about how he ran those probes.
The hearing begins at 9 a.m. Eastern on Sept. 29, 2026, in the Hart Senate Office Building. It arrives as the Justice Department is also scrutinizing people who worked on the earlier investigations.
Smith faces Chairman Chuck Grassley’s committee in a hearing titled around alleged “abuse of authority.” Republicans say he targeted their side. Smith says politics played no role and that he stands by his work. The main flashpoints are phone records of lawmakers and a disputed perjury referral.
What to Know About the Jack Smith Senate Hearing
The committee titled the session “Oversight of Jack Smith’s Abuse of Authority and the Targeting of Republicans and Related Matters.” Grassley, an Iowa Republican, chairs it and has criticized Smith repeatedly. In a statement before the hearing, he said Smith “must answer” for what he called political targeting paid for by taxpayers.
Grassley also argued that Democrats would have reacted very differently had Smith done the same to them. He said his aim is to hold the Justice Department of the Biden era accountable.
Smith did not release a statement before the Jack Smith Senate hearing began. According to Reuters, which saw a copy of his opening remarks, he plans to say he stands by his prosecutions. He is also expected to accuse the current administration of vilifying him and former members of his team.
| Detail | What we know |
|---|---|
| Witness | Jack Smith, former special counsel |
| Panel | Senate Judiciary Committee, chaired by Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) |
| Date and time | Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, 9 a.m. ET |
| Location | Hart Senate Office Building, Washington |
| Cases at issue | Two federal cases against Trump, both since dismissed |
| Main disputes | Lawmakers’ phone records, perjury referral, alleged political bias |
Phone Records at the Center of the Dispute
One major line of questioning involves records his office collected during the 2020 election investigation. Smith has confirmed that prosecutors sought call logs, known as toll records, for members of Congress. Such records show the time, date and length of calls and the numbers involved. They do not reveal what was said.
Smith has called this a normal investigative step. He told the House Judiciary Committee in January that the records helped investigators understand the scope of the conspiracy they were examining, including who was being pressured or influenced.
Republicans see it differently. Grassley has released several batches of documents from the investigation over the past year and describes the probe as improper.
The text message question
A second issue involves text messages. In July, Justice Department documents given to the committee showed that Smith’s team had obtained messages through the National Archives, according to CBS News. Those messages included texts from 44 members of Congress, both Republicans and Democrats.
Smith told lawmakers earlier he had not sought the content of lawmakers’ texts through a warrant, only toll records. Republicans have accused him of misleading Congress based on the newer documents.
Perjury Referral and Legal Pressure on Investigators
Rep. Jim Jordan, an Ohio Republican, asked the Trump administration to investigate whether Smith made false statements in his House testimony. Smith’s lawyers rejected that claim. They said he gave truthful answers and accused Jordan of trying to weaponize the justice system against a career public servant. Former federal prosecutors told NBC News that the Justice Department would have difficulty building a perjury case.
The Jack Smith Senate hearing also lands during a broader Justice Department effort aimed at people tied to the Trump investigations. The administration has removed FBI and Justice Department officials who worked on earlier cases. It also started a so-called “grand conspiracy” investigation into federal law enforcement actions dating back to 2016.
Joe diGenova, a former federal prosecutor, led that effort until he left the department this month. He told NBC News that “lanes got crossed” during his final days. Defense lawyers for current and former officials also told a court last week that prosecutors seem interested in the 2022 FBI search of Mar-a-Lago, where agents found classified documents.
Smith’s Defense and Trump’s Position
Smith has said he believes a jury would have convicted Trump in the election case. He has dismissed the idea that the Biden administration or other political actors directed his decisions, calling it “laughable.” His final report on that case said Trump inspired supporters to commit violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6.
Trump pleaded not guilty and has denied inciting the attack, describing his rally remarks as “totally appropriate.” After returning to office, he gave clemency to Jan. 6 defendants. Democrats on the Judiciary Committee say the hearing gives Smith a chance to explain an investigation they consider well founded.
Classified documents case off the table
Smith is not expected to discuss the classified documents investigation. Judge Aileen Cannon, appointed by Trump, ordered that the related volume of his report stay unreleased. The Justice Department argues that answering questions on the topic would violate her order.
Readers can follow live coverage of the Jack Smith Senate hearing at PBS NewsHour.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is testifying at the hearing?
Jack Smith, the former special counsel who led two federal cases against Donald Trump, is the witness before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
When and where is it held?
It starts at 9 a.m. Eastern on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, in the Hart Senate Office Building.
What are Republicans accusing Smith of?
Grassley and other Republicans say Smith abused his authority and politically targeted Republicans. Smith has denied those claims.
What are toll records?
They list details such as the time, date and length of calls and the numbers involved. They do not include what was said.
Will Smith discuss the classified documents case?
He is not expected to. The Justice Department says a ruling by Judge Aileen Cannon bars answers on that investigation.
This report on the Jack Smith Senate hearing reflects information available on Sept. 29, 2026, before the outcome was known, and may be updated.
