Former Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith testified in a closed-door deposition that former President Donald Trump privately acknowledged to others that he lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden, even as Trump publicly insisted he won. The testimony was released at the end of December by the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, providing fresh insight into Trump’s understanding of the 2020 result and Smith’s now-controversial investigations.
Smith’s Deposition and Trump’s Private Comments
During his mid-December testimony before the Republican-controlled House Judiciary Committee, Smith was asked whether Trump ever admitted he lost the 2020 election. According to the released transcript, Smith replied “yes,” saying Trump made statements in the presence of others acknowledging his defeat.
Smith cited instances in which Trump reportedly said things like “Can you believe I lost to this f’ing guy?” when referring to Joe Biden. These comments, Smith said, were made in private settings with others present and served as corroborative evidence in the broader investigation into Trump’s actions after the 2020 election.
Context: Public Claims vs. Private Remarks
While Trump privately acknowledged losing in these conversations, publicly he maintained for years that he won the 2020 election and repeatedly made false claims of widespread election fraud. These public assertions were central to Trump’s political narrative and contributed to ongoing disputes about the election’s legitimacy.
In the weeks after the 2020 election, Trump and many of his allies pursued legal challenges and pressured state officials to overturn results in multiple battleground states. Those efforts culminated in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the building in an unsuccessful attempt to block congressional certification of the Electoral College vote.
Smith’s Investigations and Legal Actions
Jack Smith was appointed special counsel by then-Attorney General Merrick Garland in late 2022 to oversee two major federal cases involving Trump: one on retention of classified documents and another on efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.
In August 2023, Trump was indicted in the election interference case, accused of criminally conspiring to overturn the election outcome, orchestrating strategies to keep power, and undermining the 2020 result. At the same time, Smith also prosecuted Trump for allegedly illegally retaining classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after leaving office.
However, after Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election and return to the White House in January 2025, Smith dropped both federal cases against him. The dismissals were based on Department of Justice policy that generally prohibits prosecuting a sitting president.
Smith’s Defense of His Work
In his deposition, Smith defended the integrity of his investigations, insisting they were grounded in evidence and legal standards rather than political motives. He denied allegations from Trump and his supporters that the Justice Department had been “weaponized” against the former president for partisan reasons.
Part of Smith’s defense focused on the strength of the evidence his team gathered. In other remarks made during his closed testimony, Smith said his investigators had developed “proof beyond a reasonable doubt” that Trump had criminally conspired to overturn the election and had mishandled classified documents though he acknowledged he could not publicly discuss all aspects of the cases due to court orders and procedural constraints.
Political Reactions and Release Strategy
Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee released the full 255-page transcript of Smith’s testimony on December 31, 2025 a date critics noted was chosen to minimize media attention. Some commentators pointed out that
releasing important documents during holidays is a tactic that can reduce public scrutiny and awareness.
Democratic lawmakers criticized the closed-door format and the timing of the release. They argued that Smith should have been allowed to
testify publicly to answer questions about his decisions and the evidence behind his prosecutions. Trump himself had also previously suggested public testimony, claiming it would expose weaknesses in the investigations though that never materialized.
Continuing Debates Over the 2020 Election and Legal Authority
The question of Trump’s acknowledgment of losing the 2020 election feeds into a
broader debate over his post-election conduct and attempts to overturn the results. Even as Trump returned to office in 2025 and issued pardons to many January 6 rioters, the underlying tensions about the legitimacy of the 2020 vote continue to shape U.S. political discourse.
Trump’s repeated public denials of the 2020 outcome, juxtaposed with Smith’s testimony about private acknowledgments, highlight enduring divisions in how different factions perceive that election and its aftermath. Whether Smith’s revelations will influence ongoing political narratives or future legal proceedings remains to be seen as national debates around election integrity and executive accountability evolve.
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