AT&T Denied Jack Smith’s ‘Arctic Frost’ Subpoena for Senators’ Phone Records While Verizon Complied

Two telecommunications companies have provided lawmakers with subpoenas from former special counsel Jack Smith. Verizon complied with the subpoena, turning over toll records of several Republican senators, while AT&T refused to comply.

Smith requested the toll records, which show call activity but not the contents of calls, as part of his “Arctic Frost” investigation into the role that President Trump and his allies played in fomenting the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot and efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Senator Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa) released the documents Thursday after the companies handed them over in response to his oversight request, issued as part of his investigation into the scope of the Biden-era “Arctic Frost” investigation.

Earlier this week, Grassley released a large collection of records showing federal investigators sent almost 200 subpoenas targeting more than 400 Republican entities and individuals. Other records Grassley previously released showed the “Arctic Frost” investigation covered 92 Republican organizations and GOP-linked operatives.

The FBI also targeted the toll records of eight GOP Senators and Representative Mike Kelly (R., Pa.) from January 4-7, 2021. The toll records show the Senators’s phone call activity but do not contain information about the contents of the calls. Several of the lawmakers the FBI looked into were proponents of Trump’s false claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him. Trump lost the election narrowly to former President Joe Biden. His false claims inspired the January 6 riot and coordinated efforts across multiple swing states to contest the 2020 election outcome.

Verizon told Grassley that it received a subpoena from Smith’s office for a dozen phone numbers without any names or information attached to them. The subpoena was related to the phone numbers in the FBI record Grassley released to demonstrate that Smith’s investigation targeted at least nine Republican lawmakers. Verizon confirmed that the subpoena sought “subscriber information and call detail records” from the relevant time period but not the content of the communications.

Upon reviewing the subpoena, Verizon concluded it was “facially valid” and produced the information federal law enforcement demanded.

“Verizon produced subscriber information and call detail records pertaining to the identified date range,” the company said in a letter sent last week.

“The records included information on the billing statements for the numbers, which included the subscriber name and address; account number; bill amount; type of mobile device; time, date, and duration of calls made during the four days within the subpoena’s date range; the originating and receiving telephone numbers for each call; and the city and state of the cell tower that initially connected the calling party,” the letter adds.

However, Verizon subsequently reformed its practices for handling records associated with sitting Senators. Verizon’s new process entails closer collaboration with the Senate and Senate Sergeant at Arms before producing records to federal law enforcement.

“In 2023 Verizon was ordered to turn over call records for certain members of Congress to the Department of Justice. The Special Counsel and DOJ at the time decided who to target. A court ordered Verizon not to tell anyone about that. We had no choice but to comply with the court order. So we did,” Verizon spokesman Rich Young said in a statement to NR.

“We’re now actively working with members of Congress to furnish all related documents pertaining to this issue. That process is underway. Moving forward, we are implementing a rigorous new protocol for subpoenas involving congressional members, requiring escalation to a senior Verizon leader prior to anything being handed over.”

AT&T confirmed that Smith subpoenaed the company for phone records associated with two congressional lawmakers. But AT&T pushed back against Smith’s effort to obtain records and the special counsel did not pursue the manner further, so AT&T did not produce records.

“In short, based on our review of our files, AT &T has not produced any records or other information to Special Counsel Jack Smith relating to any of the members of Congress named in your letter or, for that matter, any member of Congress,” AT &T wrote to Grassley last week.

The “Arctic Frost” investigation began in 2022 with authorization from then-Attorney General Merrick Garland and then-FBI Director Christopher Wray. It eventually turned into Smith’s prosecution of Trump in Washington, D.C. related to January 6th. Smith subpoenaed Verizon and AT&T in May 2023, and secured non-disclosure orders from Judge Boasberg at the time of the subpoenas.

Senator Ted Cruz (R., Texas) was one of the lawmakers whose records Smith sought to obtain from AT&T. At a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Cruz railed against Smith’s investigation and revealed the non-disclosure order Boasberg signed to ensure he would not find out about the subpoena.

“Jack Smith was a fundamentally corrupt prosecutor. This was a political enemies list from the beginning,” Cruz said.

Cruz praised AT&T for standing its ground against Smith. He also speculated that Boasberg might have signed other non-disclosure orders related to the other Republican Senators, a theory proven correct by Boasberg’s order for the Verizon subpoena.

Boasberg’s name will be familiar to conservatives who became aware of him earlier this year for repeatedly attempting to block the Trump administration’s swift deportations of illegal immigrants.

FBI Director Kash Patel is working closely with Republican Senators and House lawmakers to divulge all of the relevant “Arctic Frost” documents. Patel has fired agents involved with the investigation and shuttered the unit tasked with carrying it out from the Washington, D.C. FBI field office.

Republican lawmakers have demanded further investigation into “Arctic Frost” and potential prosecutions of those who participated in it. Grassley has likened the FBI investigation to Watergate because of its actions against Republican lawmakers.

Smith’s case against Trump in Washington, D.C. ran into various legal setbacks and never made it trial. Litigation tied to the prosecution led to the Supreme Court’s 2024 decision granting the president criminal immunity for official acts. Upon Trump’s 2024 election victory, Smith folded the D.C. case and his classified documents case against Trump in Florida. Smith resigned shortly thereafter instead of giving Trump the satisfaction of firing him.

Trump routinely accused Smith of weaponizing the federal government against him on behalf of Biden.

“These thugs should all be investigated and put in prison. A disgrace to humanity. Deranged Jack Smith is a criminal!!!” Trump posted on Truth Social Wednesday.

Smith has offered to testify publicly before the House and Senate to push back against Republican assertions about “Arctic Frost” and his broader prosecutorial efforts against Trump. In that vein, Smith’s attorneys have defended his actions against the Republican Senators for being legal and within the scope of Justice Department policy.

Editor’s note: This article was updated after publication to include Verizon’s statement.