Senator Schmitt accuses ex-special counsel Smith of perjury over basketball game, gets details wrong

GOP Senator's Attempt to Trap Jack Smith Backfires Spectacularly

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday, Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO) attempted to corner former special counsel Jack Smith—but ended up getting key facts wrong.

Schmitt asked Smith whether he had attended an NBA game between the Golden State Warriors and Atlanta Hawks on February 3, 2024, in Atlanta—the day after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis revealed her affair with prosecutor Nathan Wade.

Smith responded: "I definitely did not go to a Hawks game," adding that he had not spent time in Atlanta or met with Willis or Wade.

Schmitt then accused Smith of perjury. His staff displayed a poster board allegedly showing text messages from Smith's team discussing plans to attend the game—but the board was quickly removed.

"You just took it down really quick," Smith noted. Schmitt refused to show it again, instead calling Smith a "dirtbag."

Smith later clarified that he had attended a college basketball game in February 2024 between the University of Maryland and the University of Iowa, where Caitlin Clark played.

Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) interjected: "Could it then be that University of Iowa was the Hawkeyes?"

Schmitt accused Klobuchar of trying to "rehabilitate the witness," insisting the text messages "could have obviously been related to the prosecution that was coordinated in his office in Atlanta."

"I think people should have their facts straight before they accuse someone of being a dirtbag, and not get the teams wrong," Klobuchar replied.

She later confirmed Smith's account: "The game was in fact in Maryland, Mr. Smith. And I would just say, for a U.S. senator to have false information and imply, based on a confusion about the name of a team, which I knew knowing my midwestern sports, and imply that you were in another city, that you were somehow involved that day in what was happening in Georgia and then call you a dirtbag is something that deserves an apology."

Trump's New AI Chatbot: "Cannot, in Theory, Be Hacked"

The Trump administration unveiled a new AI chatbot hosted on America.gov during a summit Tuesday, designed as a centralized portal for public access to government information.

President Donald Trump pledged the platform was built with cutting-edge technology that would not save or risk user data.

"With America.gov, for the first time in history, the government is offering an experience that matches and in some ways even exceeds the state of the art," Trump said.

"It's built from the ground up with your privacy and security in mind. They've used a brand new technology—it's absolutely brand new. It's amazing, people don't even have access to it for the most part, to ensure that your personal information is not collected or stored and your conversation disappears when you leave and everything stays totally private."

However, Trump added: "Cannot, in theory, be hacked into," noting that "they figure a way to do that, we'll end it. Because they always figure a way, right? If anything does happen. We think it might not happen."

The site was created by Airbnb co-founder and U.S. Chief Design Officer Joe Gebbia, aiming to centralize government databases and websites. The administration said the platform could eventually handle passport applications, name changes, campsite reservations, and Medicare plans.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders Faces Right-Wing Backlash Over Welfare Ad

Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders is facing criticism from conservative figures over an ad featuring a white man named "Brad" playing video games who got off welfare thanks to the state's work requirement.

Key Reactions:

• Matt Walsh: "This Republican ad calling out welfare leeches uses a young white male named 'Brad' as the villain. Meanwhile, back in reality, women are significantly more likely to be on welfare than men. And black people are astronomically more likely to be on welfare than white people. So the number of single young white male 'Brads' abusing the welfare system is minuscule. Practically non-existent. But of course Republicans don't have the balls to do this ad with 'Shaniqua' as the villain."

• James Fishback: "White men named Brad don't typically commit welfare fraud. I'd recommend you start with the baby-momma with a BMW who just got back from her Carnival Cruise."

• Paul (@WomanDefiner): "Almost zero white men under the age of 62 are on welfare. 69% of all immigrant classes are on welfare. The GOP is filled with anti White leftist."

• RAMZPAUL: Called for Sanders to "apologize for her blood libel," adding: "Sarah Huckabee never had a real job. Her daddy was a two-time governor. She never worked in the private sector. She never served in the military. Her entire qualification was her daddy. Maybe she should be cut off the taxpayer funds and get a job as a waitress."

Sanders' Response:

Sanders doubled down: "Some critics online don't like my welfare work requirement ad. Next thing you know they'll say I should have used cookies instead of cheese balls. If you are able-bodied you should not collect welfare simply because you choose not to work. Period."

By the Numbers:

• In Arkansas, 52–54% of SNAP (food stamp) recipients are white
• 57.8% of Medicaid recipients in the state are white
• Research shows work requirements do not reduce poverty and can make people poorer
• Most healthcare assistance recipients are already working

Critics also noted that Sanders has only ever held political jobs thanks to her father, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, and has never applied for a private-sector job.

Jack Smith: Proof "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt" of Trump's Crimes

Former special counsel Jack Smith reiterated in his opening remarks to the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday that his investigations found proof "beyond a reasonable doubt" that President Donald Trump committed "serious crimes."

Key Statements from Smith:

• "Our investigation developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in serious crimes against our nation."
• "If asked whether to prosecute a former president today based on the same facts, I would do so regardless of whether that president was a Republican or a Democrat."
• "The charges against President Trump were the result of the evidence. Grand juries in two separate districts reached this conclusion based on his actions, as alleged in the indictments they returned."
• "Rather than accept his defeat in the 2020 presidential election, President Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results and prevent the lawful transfer of power."
• "After leaving office in January of 2021, President Trump illegally kept classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago social club and repeatedly tried to obstruct justice to conceal his continued retention of those documents. Highly sensitive national security information was held in a bathroom and ballroom where events and gatherings took place."

Smith's team determined that Trump retained the documents to advance his business interests.

The testimony was nearly identical to his January appearance before the House Judiciary Committee. Smith had long sought to testify publicly but was previously limited to closed-door hearings.

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