Former special counsel Jack Smith says the pledge of allegiance before he prepares to testify during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill on Jan. 22, 2026. (Al Drago/Getty Images)
Cooney's LinkedIn profile states, "As Principal Deputy to Special Counsel Jack Smith, Cooney was a lead prosecutor in both criminal prosecutions of President Trump for obstruction of justice and conspiracy."
Smith praised Cooney in a statement reported by the New York Times.
JACK SMITH SAYS TRUMP ‘WILLFULLY’ BROKE THE LAW, BLASTS DOJ ‘RETRIBUTION’ IN SECOND TERM
Former U.S. special counsel Jack Smith, testifies before the House Judiciary Committee about his investigations into President Donald Trump, in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 22, 2026. ( SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)
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"Never has there been a Congress that has been such a weak and ineffective check on a president’s abuses of power," Cooney said, according to the Times. "I lie awake every night worrying that Donald Trump does not have the best interests of our country in mind, and that’s a seismic shift in American leadership and politics."
Alex Nitzberg is a writer for Fox News Digital.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/former-jack-smith-deputy-involved-prosecuting-trump-announces-run-office