Former Special Counsel Jack Smith seized the personal payroll data of a notable conservative organization as part of his Arctic Frost lawfare against President Donald Trump, according to a new bombshell report.
Independent reporter Catherine Herridge broke the news on Friday that Smith’s team acquired the information from the renowned Conservative Partnership Institute (CPI) as part of its expansive probe. The revelation was included in whistleblower disclosures reportedly obtained by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.
According to Herridge, the February 2023 financial data nabbed by Smith’s team “included CPI employees’ medical, dental, and vision insurance coverage, along with a CPI bank statement.” The former Fox and CBS reporter further noted how “the collection of CPI’s February 2023 payroll data appears to go beyond the scope” of Smith’s original mandate to probe events surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol demonstrations.
Speaking with The Federalist, CPI Vice President of Programs Rachel Bovard said she is “at a loss to explain why Jack Smith thought the details of [her] dental and vision plans were part of a grand political conspiracy against democracy.” Blasting Smith for using the federal government to “harass and falsely accuse innocent conservatives for years,” The Federalist senior tech columnist noted how “it’s unconscionable that this was done in the name of ‘justice.'”
“There was no pursuit of justice — there was only weaponizing the legal process to punish Joe Biden’s political enemies,” Bovard added.
— Catherine Herridge (@C__Herridge) October 16, 2026EXCLUSIVE: New whistleblower reporting via @ChuckGrassley reveals that personal payroll data for the Conservative Partnership Institute (CPI) was collected by Jack Smith’s team.
The financial data included CPI employees’ medical, dental, and vision insurance coverage, along with… pic.twitter.com/KukaGwRu0Z
Grassley’s office revealed last year how CPI was one of numerous conservative organizations targeted in Smith’s Arctic Frost probe. The previous disclosures showed how the Biden FBI filed subpoenas seeking these groups’ banking and communication records.
Such invasive requests specifically named CPI’s Mark Meadows and Cleta Mitchell. While Meadows served as Trump’s White House chief of staff during his first term, Mitchell serves as chair of the Election Integrity Network and advised Trump on his post-2020 election litigation in Georgia.
Additional records released that same week by the House Judiciary Committee showed that the FBI targeted CPI President and CEO Ed Corrigan as part of Arctic Frost. The release disclosed communications among FBI officials, who were discussing allegations from an unidentified individual about Corrigan. This included outlandish claims that Corrigan and Meadows “are engaging in willful criminal activity,” and that Corrigan “has [redacted] properties at which he wants to build up infrastructure to train people for civil war.”
Herridge’s reporting comes days after Grassley sent a memo to his Senate Judiciary colleagues revealing that Smith acquired the personal information of at least 639,000 Republican voters, donors, and supporters in his Arctic Frost conquest. Among the obtained information were Republicans’ names, addresses, credit card data, and more. Data on MAGA hat sales and purchases was also reportedly collected.
Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood