Former special counsel Jack Smith just dropped a bombshell on the credibility of a key figure in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack investigation.
During a closed-door deposition on Dec. 17, 2025, before the House Judiciary Committee in Washington, D.C., Smith questioned Cassidy Hutchinson, a former White House aide whose testimony fueled much of the narrative around the events of that chaotic day in 2021, as Fox News reports.
For hardworking taxpayers footing the bill for endless investigations, this revelation raises serious questions about the legal exposure of building cases on shaky ground—potentially wasting millions in public funds on testimony that might not even hold up in court.
Hutchinson, who served as a top aide to White House chief of staff Mark Meadows during the final months of President Donald Trump’s first term, became a central witness for the Jan. 6 Committee.
Her testimony, including a widely publicized hearing in June 2022, painted vivid pictures of warnings about violence and Trump’s alleged knowledge of armed supporters at his rally that day.
But Smith isn’t buying the hype, arguing that much of what she said lacks the punch of firsthand knowledge, making it vulnerable to being tossed out as hearsay in any serious legal setting.
One of Hutchinson’s most dramatic claims was a story about Trump allegedly trying to grab the steering wheel of a Secret Service vehicle to redirect it to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
As she recounted under oath, Trump supposedly demanded, “I'm the effing president, take me up to the Capitol now,” only to be rebuffed by an agent insisting they return to the West Wing (Cassidy Hutchinson).
Yet, Smith pointed out discrepancies, noting, “We interviewed, I think, the people she talked to, and we also interviewed… officers who were there, including the officer who was in the car,” whose version didn’t match Hutchinson’s secondhand tale (Jack Smith).
Smith’s critique cuts deep, especially for conservatives who’ve long questioned the Jan. 6 Committee’s credibility, particularly given its makeup of just two anti-Trump Republicans alongside others pushing a specific narrative.
He didn’t mince words, suggesting that as a defense attorney, he’d immediately move to strike parts of Hutchinson’s testimony as unreliable hearsay unfit for a courtroom.
Republicans, already skeptical of the committee’s objectivity, now have fresh ammunition to demand accountability for how such investigations are conducted and funded.
During his over eight-hour deposition, Smith didn’t just focus on Hutchinson—he also stood by his own methods in probing Trump’s actions related to the 2020 election and alleged retention of classified materials.
From subpoenaing phone data of lawmakers to seeking gag orders and adjusting indictments after a Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity, Smith made it clear he’s playing hardball, even if his take on Hutchinson softens some of the Jan. 6 narrative’s edge.
