Subpoenas of 400 Republicans- a ‘Total Denial of Constitutional Rights’
June 15 | Posted by mrossol | Deep State, DOJ, FBI, Lawfare, The Left, US ConstitutionSenate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) called the Arctic Frost investigation the “most perfect example” of government weaponization against political opponents on Sunday, demanding prosecution of those responsible for what he described as a sweeping constitutional breach.
Source: 400 Republican Subpoenas in Arctic Frost Probe are a ‘Total Denial of Constitutional Rights’
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) called the Arctic Frost investigation the “most perfect example” of government weaponization against political opponents on Sunday, demanding prosecution of those responsible for what he described as a sweeping constitutional breach.
Grassley made the remarks in an interview with The Washington Times, saying the intent behind the probe was not simply to prosecute Trump but to destroy him altogether. “The attempt was to make sure that not only was President Trump never president again, but that he would be ruined economically, socially and politically, and he’d end up in prison,” Grassley said.
Special counsel Jack Smith’s team issued 197 subpoenas targeting records tied to approximately 430 Republican individuals and entities as part of the Arctic Frost probe, according to whistleblower documents the Senate Judiciary Committee released in October 2025. Grassley called the sweep an abuse that should have been obvious to the judge who signed off on it.
“It’s just an abuse of a special counsel,” Grassley said. “It’s ignorance on the part of the judge that participated in it. And it’s just a total denial of constitutional rights.”
Judge James Boasberg authorized the subpoenas. Grassley pointed out that any subpoenas directed at members of Congress were legally indefensible from the start, given the Constitution’s Speech and Debate Clause, which shields lawmakers from legal action tied to their official duties. “He’s a judge. He’s got to know the Constitution. He’s got to know the Speech and Debate Clause,” Grassley said. “Maybe not if it had been one or two. Maybe you could give him an out. But 400, the total amount ought to bring attention to it.”
When asked whether Arctic Frost was worse than Watergate, Grassley focused on the path forward rather than historical comparisons. He said prosecution, not congressional referrals, was the appropriate response. “I would expect that prosecution be done where these injustices have been done,” he said.
The Senate Judiciary Committee has been conducting Arctic Frost hearings throughout 2026 following the whistleblower documents released late last year. In April, Grassley publicly named five individuals he believes should face accountability for their roles in the investigation.
On the Justice Department’s track record of acting on congressional referrals, Grassley acknowledged a pattern of inaction stretching back years. “I haven’t been very fortunate over the last 10 years when I’ve referred people for prosecution,” he said, noting that individuals who he alleged lied to Congress during Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings were never charged.
“They don’t seem to want to prosecute just for lying before Congress,” Grassley said. “But I suggest that they be prosecuted, because you’ve got to tell people that you can’t lie to Congress and get away with it.”
Grassley, who first won election to the Senate in 1981 and is its longest-serving member, also called for accountability over the 2022 Supreme Court leak in the Dobbs case. He said the court should pursue prosecution of whoever provided internal documents to the press, warning that a failure to act would invite future leaks.
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