Jim Jordan reminds Jack Smith how FBI searched Barron Trump’s room during Mar-a-Lago raid
WASHINGTON, DC: Former Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith appeared before the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday, January 22, where Republican lawmakers revisited the FBI’s August 2022 search of then-former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence, again spotlighting claims that the raid included Barron Trump’s room.
The hearing opened with Committee Chair Jim Jordan citing what he described as procedural irregularities surrounding the search, as Smith faced questioning over his prosecutions of Trump after previously testifying in a closed-door deposition.
Jim Jordan flags Mar-a-Lago raid
Jordan said the 2022 search of Trump’s Florida home was among the first issues raised during Smith’s Capitol Hill testimony. He claimed that the FBI searched Barron Trump’s bedroom and first lady Melania Trump’s closet during the operation.
"And then there was the raid on President Trump's home. You know, where they searched Barron's room and the first lady's closet? In our deposition with Steven D'Antuono, head of the FBI Washington field office, he told us none of the normal process, none of the normal protocol was followed in the investigation," Jordan said.
According to Jordan, Steven D’Antuono, then head of the FBI’s Washington field office, told lawmakers that the search was overseen by the FBI’s Washington office rather than the Miami field office, which typically handles matters in Florida.
Dispute over protocol and notification
Jordan further claimed that D’Antuono and others had advised that Trump or his legal team be notified before the search was carried out, or at least contacted once agents arrived at the property. Jordan said the Department of Justice rejected those recommendations.
"Or at least when they got there, before they start the search, call the president's lawyers, ask them to come there and meet them," Jordan said, adding that the DOJ declined the suggestion.
He also pointed to the timing of Smith’s appointment, noting that Attorney General Merrick Garland named Smith as special counsel on November 18, 2022, days after Trump announced his presidential run.
"One of the first things Mr. Smith does is put on his team the very people responsible for the raid on President Trump's home," Jordan said.
Trump’s past remarks on the search
Trump has repeatedly condemned the Mar-a-Lago raid, which was tied to an investigation into the alleged mishandling of classified documents that was later dismissed. At the time, Trump accused the Biden administration of political targeting and described the search as unprecedented.
"The Biden administration invaded the home of their chief political opponent, who is absolutely destroying him and everybody else in the polls," Trump said during a 2022 rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
He also claimed agents searched his wife’s belongings and his son’s room, saying, "They went into my wife's area. They went into my son's area, my young son and what they did was a disgrace."
During later remarks to reporters, Trump again referenced the raid, saying, "They raided my house, I can tell you that. They did a big raid on my house."
