Overview
- Sen. Eric Schmitt publicly accused former special counsel Jack Smith of perjury and called him a “dirtbag” after presenting texts that Schmitt said showed Smith at an Atlanta Hawks game.
- Smith corrected the record during the hearing by saying he was not in Atlanta and that the messages instead referred to his attendance at an Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball game in Maryland.
- Committee Republican staff had warned Schmitt that the text messages were “unvetted,” reporting says, leaving responsibility for verification with his team before the public display.
- Schmitt has defended his line of questioning and told Politico he does not regret it, while an anonymous GOP official suggested the White House may have provided or prompted the material.
- The error provoked viral ridicule and sharp editorials, including from the St. Louis Post‑Dispatch, and it heightens scrutiny of GOP efforts to undermine Smith and of Senate vetting procedures going forward.