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New Document Shows Chief Judge Howell Privately Endorsed Jack Smith’s Get-Trump Lawfare

Behind closed doors, the judge overseeing Trump’s grand jury told prosecutors she ‘loved’ their legal strategy.

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A Department of Justice briefing document released by Sen. Chuck Grassley shows that Jack Smith’s special counsel team engaged in private communications with two federal judges overseeing Trump-related investigations: Chief Judge Beryl Howell and her successor, Judge James Boasberg, both Obama appointees on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and both known for their outspoken anti-Trump positions.

The document was prepared for then-Attorney General Merrick Garland on Jan. 13, 2023. It was released by Grassley ahead of this week’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the FBI’s Arctic Frost investigation into the aftermath of the 2020 election. Smith took over the investigation in November 2022, and at that point, his team likely engaged in improper communications with the two judges.

According to the briefing document, Smith’s team informed Garland that they had been in touch with Howell and that “She liked our approach of pursuing the executive privilege litigation in an omnibus fashion,” meaning the consolidation of various motions into a single filing rather than handling each separately. The notes record that Howell was aware such a motion was coming “and loves the idea.” A separate entry referenced a forthcoming meeting with Boasberg scheduled for Saturday, March 18, 2023, the day after he became chief judge, taking over from Howell.

Ex Parte Communications

Judges are generally not allowed to privately communicate with one party in a pending case without notifying the other party. However, there are exceptions. In the dispute over President Trump’s executive privilege before Howell, the issues arose in the context of grand jury proceedings. As Chief Judge overseeing grand jury administration, she and the DOJ were technically allowed to communicate without Trump’s lawyers present on matters strictly related to the grand jury. Such communications could include scheduling........

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