Senator Schmitt's baseless attack on Jack Smith's basketball attendance exposes right-wing misinformation tactics
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Senator Eric Schmitt's attempt to smear former special counsel Jack Smith by questioning his whereabouts on Feb. 3, 2024, collapsed when clear evidence showed Smith was supporting women's college basketball in Maryland, not attending an NBA game in Atlanta as falsely implied by Schmitt.
In a glaring display of right-wing misinformation, Senator Eric Schmitt used a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to cast unfounded doubt on former special counsel Jack Smith's integrity, insinuating Smith had lied about his location on Feb. 3, 2024. Schmitt brandished text messages, cherry-picked by his staff, to suggest Smith was in Georgia attending an Atlanta Hawks game.
However, video evidence swiftly debunked Schmitt's claims, showing Smith in the stands at an Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball game in Maryland—hundreds of miles from Atlanta. The so-called 'evidence' presented by Schmitt failed to mention any team or venue, and a closer look revealed that his staff had deliberately ignored the existence of women's college basketball, focusing solely on NBA schedules to fit their narrative.
Reports confirmed that the texts between Smith's staff on the day in question only discussed seat assignments and logistics, with no mention of the Hawks or Atlanta. One message from JP Cooney, Smith's deputy, referenced a seat in Row 109 and a plan to meet at halftime—details that, with minimal effort, could have been cross-checked. Yet Schmitt's team neglected even a basic online search, which would have shown that Row 109 doesn't exist at State Farm Arena, the Hawks' home court.
A local news source revealed that Schmitt had been warned about the incomplete vetting of these communications, but he pressed on, undeterred by facts. Further examination of messages from July 2023 to May 2024 uncovered a later reference to Caitlin Clark, the Iowa Hawkeyes' star, in a March 2024 email—evidence that Schmitt's office conveniently overlooked. Schmitt's excuse was that he hadn't seen those texts, a flimsy justification for his reckless accusations.
This episode has also cast a shadow over Schmitt's general counsel, Ethan Harper, whose planned move to the White House is now in jeopardy—yet another casualty of the senator's partisan crusade. While no direct link has been established, the damage from Schmitt's baseless attack is clear: a stark reminder of how right-wing politicians weaponize misinformation to undermine public servants and distract from real issues.