A House Republican thought he had a First Amendment “gotcha” for Jack Smith during Thursday’s Judiciary Committee hearing. Instead, he got steamrolled.
Rep. Ben Cline (R-VA) accused Smith of trying to silence Donald Trump by seeking a gag order, claiming there was no real-world harm to justify it. Smith immediately corrected him, noting that both the district court and the appeals court agreed Trump’s statements posed real threats to witnesses and the judicial process.
When Cline tried to argue the order had been rejected, Smith calmly explained it had been upheld and only narrowed, still protecting witnesses, court staff, the judge, and prosecutors.
Smith said Trump warned, “If you come after me, I’m coming after you,” and even suggested a witness should be put to death — statements courts found deterred witnesses from coming forward.
When Cline pressed again, Smith delivered the line that ended the debate:
“It is not incumbent on a prosecutor to wait until someone gets killed before they move for an order to protect the proceedings.”
Mic. Drop.
Watch the clip below:
