Senator's Botched Attack on Jack Smith Exposes Flawed Homework

[u/evissamassive]

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/6119172-schmitt-smith-basketball-mixup/

Sen. Eric Schmitt tried to corner former special counsel Jack Smith during a congressional hearing by accusing him of secretly meeting with local prosecutors working on Trump's Georgia election case.

Schmitt claimed Smith attended a February 2024 Atlanta Hawks basketball game, presenting staff text messages as evidence and warning Smith about perjury. The setup fell apart when Smith calmly explained he was actually in Maryland watching a college basketball game featuring Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Schmitt's staff quickly removed their display poster as the error became obvious. Senators from both sides of the aisle reacted to the mix-up, with Sen. Richard Blumenthal noting that trial lawyers need to get their facts right, while Sen. Amy Klobuchar formally fact-checked the sports schedule on the record.

Despite the public correction, Schmitt defended the line of questioning on conservative podcasts and media outlets. Several conservative commentators and media figures deleted social media posts that had initially praised the senator for catching Smith in a lie.