00:00How many days after Kevin McCarthy was sworn in as Speaker, did you subpoena his records?
00:06I don't recall, but those two things had nothing to do with one.
00:09It was 16 days after becoming the highest-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives,
00:14you subpoenaed his toll records.
00:16Do you agree that that might reasonably be considered a violation of the speech or debate clause?
00:24I do not, and I want to be clear that the toll records...
00:27collecting months' worth of phone data on the Republican Speaker of the House,
00:31the leader of the opposition, right after he got sworn in as Speaker,
00:35all around the time of a major vote.
00:37That sounds like a flagrant violation of the speech or debate clause to me,
00:41and I think most people agree with me.
00:43And Speaker McCarthy had no recourse, did he?
00:46Because you issued a nondisclosure order ensuring that neither he nor any of the American people
00:52knew about these subpoenas. Is that right?
00:56The toll record, the non-content toll record subpoenas,
00:59we did secure nondisclosure orders for those subpoenas.
01:03You did, and let me ask you, Mr. Smith, at the time you secured those nondisclosure orders,
01:07was Speaker McCarthy a flight risk?
01:12The nondisclosure order was based on concerns about...
01:15Was Speaker McCarthy a flight risk?
01:17He was not.
01:18He was not.
01:19Then why did your nondisclosure order refer to him as a flight risk?
01:23It says right here, the court finds reasonable grounds to believe that such disclosure
01:27will result in flight from prosecution.
01:33Sir, when securing a nondisclosure order,
01:38the risks don't have to be associated...
01:41You think that the Speaker of the House is a flight risk?
01:44No, this is not your time.
01:46This is my time.
01:47You think the Speaker of the House is a flight risk?
01:50You think he's going to hop on a plane and leave the country?
01:53No.
01:54What I was trying to explain is, with respect to a nondisclosure order,
01:59the risks aren't necessarily associated with the subscriber to the phone.
02:04They're the risks to the investigation.
02:06I think that you were using...
02:08This was clearly in reference to Speaker McCarthy,
02:11and you were using clearly false information to secure a nondisclosure order
02:15to hide from Speaker McCarthy and from the American people
02:19the fact that you were spying on his toll records.
02:21But I've got more, so let's move on.
02:23In May of 2023, you also issued subpoenas for toll records of nine U.S. senators
02:28and an additional representative.
02:30Is that right?
02:34In May of 2023, we did issue...
02:37You did, and there were nondisclosure orders in conjunction with those subpoenas as well, right?
02:41That's correct, consistent with department policy and the law.
02:44So again, nobody would know what you were doing.
02:45The senators would and the representatives would
02:47and the American people wouldn't know what you were doing.
02:49Is that right?
02:52The toll records that we secured and the nondisclosure orders
02:56were consistent with policy and...
02:58And you knew whenever you were doing that that there was a risk
03:00you were violating the speech or debate clause.
03:02Is that right?
03:05The toll records subpoenas that we secured were with the concurrence of the public integrity...
03:09Your own analysis says that you knew there was a risk
03:12you were violating the speech or debate clause.
03:14I have it right here.
03:15This is an email from John Keller at Public Integrity Section to your team.
03:20As you are aware, quote,
03:21As you are aware, there is some litigation risk regarding whether compelled disclosure
03:25of toll records of a member's legislative cause violates the speech or debate clause
03:30in the D.C. Circuit.
03:31That's from your own analysis right there.
03:33So you did know, didn't you?
03:35Sir, with respect to the item you just put up on the screen,
03:38the last sentence states...
03:41Oh, we're going to get to the last sentence.
03:43Okay.
03:44We're going to get to the last sentence.
03:45And you cite case law in here, quote,
03:47The bar on compelled disclosure is absolute.
03:50Is that right?
03:51Or do you think that you didn't have to abide by that precedent?
03:55To be clear, this statement is not from my office.
03:58This is the statement of the public...
04:00This is your justification for those subpoenas and NDOs that you ordered.
04:04This was part of your analysis.
04:06It's a cursory analysis.
04:07I think it's worth noting.
04:09Let's get to that last sentence then.
04:13Quote,
04:17In other words, you're using a novel legal theory,
04:22which you knew was novel.
04:23It's never been tested by any court.
04:25You're not charging any of these members.
04:27Nobody's going to know about it because you issued NDOs.
04:31Nobody's going to sue about it.
04:32So sue this.
04:33So who cares?
04:34We're going to do it anyways.
04:36I mean, you walked all over the Constitution
04:38throughout this entire process.
04:40Mr. Chairman, the Gentleman's Times is clear.
04:41Spying on members of Congress and you know it.
04:43It's absolutely disgraceful.
04:45The time.
04:45I yielded.
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