Tennessee U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) is urging U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to refer former Special Counsel Jack Smith to the Department’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) for an investigation into the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) surveillance of her and other Republican members of Congress.
Earlier this month, it was reported that Smith was allegedly tracking the private communications and phone calls of the Republicans as part of his “Arctic Frost” investigation into the January 6, 2021, Capitol protest.
As part of “Arctic Frost,” the Biden-era Department of Justice (DOJ) issued subpoenas to several telecommunications companies in 2023 regarding the Republicans’ cell phone records, gaining access to the times, recipients, durations, and locations of the calls placed on their devices from January 4, 2021, to January 7, 2021.
Those targeted by the surveillance include Blackburn, U.S. Senators Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), and U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA-16).
Jack Smith is becoming a household name and not for very good reasons. Today, I sent a letter to @AGPamBondi calling on the DOJ to investigate Jack Smith for the Biden FBI spying scandal.
He must be held accountable for targeting his political opponents. pic.twitter.com/IhDBG5wLNh
— Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) October 17, 2025
On Friday, Blackburn led Graham, Tuberville, Sullivan, and Kelly in sending a letter to Bondi requesting her to refer Smith and “any of his prosecutors who assisted with the issuance of these subpoenas” to the OPR for what the lawmakers called a “weaponized witch hunt.”
“It is clear to us that this invasion of our privacy was nothing more than a fishing expedition geared toward targeting President Trump,” they wrote.
The Republican lawmakers continued, saying Smith’s conduct with “Arctic Frost” proves he “would do anything to stop President Trump—including taking concerted steps to spy on duly elected members of Congress.”
Noting how Smith is licensed to practice law in both Tennessee and New York, the lawmakers further urged Bondi to refer the findings of the requested OPR investigation into the former special counsel to both the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility and the relevant New York Attorney Grievance Committee.
“We firmly believe that, upon examination of OPR’s findings, these state entities should consider all options in holding Smith accountable for this misconduct—including disbarment,” the lawmakers said.
Blackburn’s letter – which follows her inquiries into the cell phone carriers that allowed the Biden-era FBI to allegedly track the private communications and phone calls of the Republicans – comes as she vowed to push for full transparency and accountability, promising that those responsible would face prosecution “to the full extent of the law.”
“We are going to be certain that everybody that participated in this is prosecuted to the full extent of the law, that there is some transparency brought to bear on this. This should never happen to anyone,” Blackburn said earlier this month on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Image “Sen Marsha Blackburn” by Sen. Marsha Blackburn.
