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U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi on Tuesday alleged that special counsel Jack Smith obtained both President Donald Trump’s government-issued phone and his personal phone records during the federal investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack.
“During the Arctic Frost Investigation, we found that Special Counsel seized President Trump’s government-issued phone. This means the Biden Administration turned over President Trump’s phone to Special Counsel, an UNPRECEDENTED action,” Bondi wrote in a statement.
“In addition, Special Counsel subpoenaed all of President Trump’s PERSONAL phone records. We can never again allow this kind of government weaponization in America. I submitted these new documents to our partners on Capitol Hill. I commend our team at the FBI for working diligently to expose this,” she added.
The claims add to Republican criticism of the probe, known as “Arctic Frost.” The investigation resulted in 197 subpoenas to 34 individuals and 163 entities, including banks and political organizations, according to documents released by lawmakers.
Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said eight senators and one House member were among those targeted with subpoenas.
Some Republicans are pushing for consequences for the officials involved. A growing number of lawmakers have called for the impeachment of U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, who approved surveillance orders used in the investigation.
“Arctic Frost is Joe Biden’s Watergate,” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said. “Merrick Garland was a fundamentally corrupt attorney general. Jack Smith was a fundamentally corrupt prosecutor. This was a political enemies list from the beginning, 197 subpoenas for 430 Republican entities and individuals. That is an absolute and egregious abuse of power.”
“I am right now calling on the House to impeach Judge Boasberg,” Cruz added. “Judge Boasberg put his robes down, stood up, and said, ‘Sign me up to be part of the partisan vendetta against 20 percent of the Republicans in the Senate.’”
Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., also backed impeachment discussions, saying, “What Judge Boasberg did to Senator Cruz and maybe other senators absolutely — and I don’t say this lightly — absolutely is worthy of impeachment proceedings. There has to be accountability.”