Former Special Counsel Jack Smith has a lot to answer for. He led two of the most politicized prosecutions of all time against Donald Trump for supposed classified documents violations and election interference, spied on lawmakers with his Arctic Frost antics and turned then-Attorney General Merrick Garland’s Department of Justice into his own plaything.

Will we ever get answers. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan certainly wants them and on Wednesday he subpoenaed Smith demanding that he appear before the committee on December 17.

“Due to your service as Special Counsel, the Committee believes that you possess information that is vital to its oversight of this matter.”

Jordan wrote this in a letter accompanying his request.

The forthcoming deposition which is set to take place behind closed doors comes as House and Senate Republicans have zeroed in on Smith’s election-related investigation of Trump. They are describing it as a scandal that unnecessarily swept up hundreds of Republican lawmakers, GOP entities, Trump allies and media outlets as part of the probe.

Jordan wants the hearings behind closed doors so lawmakers can do more than grandstand for the television audience in five-minute allotments.

Smith has already offered to publicly testify before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees. However a source familiar with Jordan’s request said a deposition is the chairman’s preferred format because each party on the committee can question Smith for an hour at a time and build a better record. In a public hearing lawmakers typically question a witness in five-minute intervals.

Jordan also demanded all documents and communications related to Smith’s investigations.

“Due to your service as Special Counsel, the Committee believes that you possess information that is vital to its oversight of this matter.”

Jordan wrote this according to Fox News.

Smith allegedly secretly obtained phone record data from at least eight senators and one congressman. He also issued 197 subpoenas directed to 400 Republican organizations including Turning Point USA and the Republican Attorneys General Association.

The infamous Judge James Boasberg issued many of them and slapped gag orders on phone companies regarding the matter.

We’ll see if Smith voluntarily appears. It’s time he explained why he thought it was just fine to turn the special counsel’s office into some kind of banana republic secret police squad. If he declines to show up Jordan should use all the powers at his disposal to inflict consequences.

The Arctic Frost scandal represents one of the most egregious abuses of prosecutorial power in American history. Smith secretly spied on sitting members of Congress while supposedly investigating January 6.

The 197 subpoenas directed at 400 Republican organizations shows this was not a legitimate criminal investigation but a fishing expedition designed to intimidate conservatives. Smith was collecting information on political opponents under the guise of law enforcement.

Judge Boasberg’s role in issuing subpoenas and imposing gag orders on phone companies prevented Republicans from learning they were being spied on. This coordination between the special counsel and a friendly judge enabled the surveillance to continue undetected.

The targeting of Turning Point USA and the Republican Attorneys General Association demonstrates Smith was going after mainstream conservative organizations not criminal enterprises. These groups engage in legal political activity.

Smith obtaining phone records from eight senators and one congressman without their knowledge violates basic constitutional protections. The legislative branch is supposed to be protected from executive branch surveillance absent extraordinary circumstances.

His offer to testify publicly appears designed to limit what Republicans can ask. In a public hearing he can grandstand and run out the clock during five-minute questioning periods.

Jordan’s preference for a closed-door deposition allows for extended questioning where Smith cannot evade accountability. Each party getting an hour at a time means real interrogation rather than soundbites.

The demand for all documents and communications will reveal the full scope of Smith’s surveillance operation. Republicans need to know who authorized the spying and what information was collected.

Smith’s two prosecutions of Trump for classified documents and election interference were transparently political. Both cases fell apart but served their purpose of harassing Trump during the campaign.

His transformation of the special counsel office into a secret police squad targeting Republicans represents the weaponization of justice Democrats claimed to oppose. They accused Trump of planning to persecute enemies while doing exactly that themselves.

The endless lawfare against Donald Trump exemplified the banana republic nature of the Biden regime. Using prosecution as a political weapon is what dictatorships do not democracies.