U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks to reporters on his way to the Senate weekly policy luncheons at the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 6, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
At issue were subpoenas and gag orders issued by former special counsel Jack Smith's team as part of its probe into President Donald Trump's actions in the wake of the 2020 election.
The redacted documents were made public this week by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.
They included subpoenas of phone records for 10 senators and one House lawmaker, and gag orders sent to Verizon and AT&T instructing them not to notify lawmakers of the subpoena. (Verizon complied, AT&T did not.)
Both the subpoenas and gag orders were signed by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, according to the newly released documents — a detail that prompted fresh criticism and indignation from some of the Republicans in question, including Cruz, who blasted the investigation in question as "worse than Watergate" and a gross violation of prosecutorial powers.
Blackburn blasted Boasberg as an "activist" judge. Some lawmakers further argued for his impeachment as a result of his involvement.
In fact, his role in the process is far from surprising.
WHO IS JAMES BOASBERG, THE US JUDGE AT THE CENTER OF TRUMP'S DEPORTATION EFFORTS?
Jack Smith, US special counsel, speaks during a news conference in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
A graduate of Yale, Oxford University and Yale Law School, Boasberg clerked for the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals before joining the Justice Department as a federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C.
He was tapped in 2002 by then-President George W. Bush to serve on the D.C. Superior Court, where he served until 2011, when he was nominated by President Barack Obama to the federal bench in D.C. in 2011.
His confirmation vote soared through the Senate with a 96-0 vote of approval, including with the support of Sen. Grassley and other Republicans named in the subpoena.
Boasberg in 2014 was appointed by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to a seven-year term on the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, or FISA Court, comprised of 11 federal judges hand-selected by the chief justice.
Former special counsel Jack Smith, for his part, has since defended his decision to subpoena the Republican lawmakers' phone records, which Fox News Digital reported includes phone records for a four-day period surrounding the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
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They did not include the contents of phone calls or messages, which would require a warrant, but they did include "[call] detail records for inbound and outbound calls, text messages, direct connect, and voicemail messages" and phone number, subscriber, and payment information.
His lawyers told Senate lawmakers in a letter earlier this month that the decision to do so was "entirely proper" and is consistent with Justice Department policy.
Fox News's Ashley Oliver contributed to this report.
Breanne Deppisch is a national politics reporter for Fox News Digital covering the Trump administration, with a focus on the Justice Department, FBI and other national news. She previously covered national politics at the Washington Examiner and The Washington Post, with additional bylines in Politico Magazine, the Colorado Gazette and others. You can send tips to Breanne at Breanne.Deppisch@fox.com, or follow her on X at @breanne_dep.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/boasbergs-role-arctic-frost-investigation-sparks-criticism-from-gop-senators