Former Jack Smith aides join Democracy Forward to target Trump administration
Former deputies of ex-special counsel Jack Smith, JP Cooney and Molly Gaston, have been hired by the advocacy group Democracy Forward to expand its anti-Trump legal efforts.
JP Cooney and Molly Gaston, both former senior prosecutors under former special counsel Jack Smith, have joined the legal advocacy organization Democracy Forward. The group, which pursued more than 150 lawsuits against the Trump administration last year, brought the two on to strengthen its anti-corruption practice. Cooney and Gaston previously led federal prosecutions of Donald Trump until those cases were dismissed and they were terminated early in his second term.
In a joint statement they emphasized a commitment to holding powerful officials accountable, citing the current administration’s “self-dealing.” Democracy Forward’s president Skye Perryman highlighted the duo’s experience and noted ongoing litigation involving DOJ funds, the IRS settlement, and records related to Kash Patel. The new hires will also contest the legality of their own dismissals while focusing on voting-rights and election-integrity lawsuits.
Why it matters
The hires signal a renewed legal push against alleged Trump-era abuses and could shape future accountability efforts.
How this story developed
- Aug 5 White House releases declassified files on FBI probe into Trump’s 2017 Comey firing
- Aug 5 The White House released the declassified memos this week.
- Aug 6 The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee voted along party lines to cite Dr. Anthony Fauci for contempt after he repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment during a hearing.
- Aug 6 The committee moved from discussion to an 8‑5 vote adopting the contempt resolution.
- Aug 10 President Trump highlighted a National Park Service worker’s account alleging David Hearn violently damaged the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, despite prosecutors moving to drop the felony charge.
- Aug 10 The committee’s vote was 8‑7 along party lines.
- Aug 10 The House Judiciary Committee announced it will subpoena Justice and Interior Department records related to the indictment.
- Aug 10 In January 2021, Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that fever after a second COVID-19 mRNA dose could theoretically increase first-trimester miscarriage risk, according to messages released by a Senate committee.
- Aug 11 Senators made public the first batch of Fauci’s iPhone messages.
- Aug 11 Declassified records also detail the FBI’s May 10 2017 “MARCH TOLL” investigation into Jeff Sessions.
- Aug 11 White House asked the Justice Department to consider filing fresh charges against David Hearn.
- Aug 12 Senators called for a special counsel to investigate Fauci over the pregnancy‑vaccine texts.
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