Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) on Tuesday defended his questioning of former special counsel Jack Smith during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing following an exchange regarding Smith's travel and attendance at a basketball game. Schmitt had questioned Smith on whether he attended a professional basketball game in Atlanta in February 2024, an inquiry that Schmitt stated was intended to determine if Smith had met with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D).
The hearing, held on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, was the third time Smith has testified under oath on Capitol Hill and his second public appearance. Republican members of the committee have spent two years investigating Smith's efforts to bring criminal charges against Donald Trump for attempting to subvert the 2020 presidential election. Smith ultimately dropped those charges following Trump’s victory in the 2024 election, citing Justice Department policy that forbids the criminal prosecution of a sitting president.
During the hearing, Schmitt displayed a poster board with text messages suggesting Smith attended a game between the Atlanta Hawks and the Golden State Warriors on February 3, 2024. Smith testified that he did not recall being in Atlanta and stated he instead attended a University of Maryland women’s basketball game to watch Iowa Hawkeyes player Caitlin Clark. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) later confirmed that the Iowa-Maryland game occurred on that date, noting that Iowa won 93-85. Schmitt, in a follow-up interview with KTVI St. Louis, maintained that he was doing his job by asking questions and noted that he and Smith could both agree on being fans of college sports.
For the public, the hearing highlights the ongoing legal and political scrutiny of the 2020 election investigations and the use of congressional subpoena power to review the conduct of federal prosecutors. The exchange between Schmitt and Smith serves as a public record of the evidentiary basis used by lawmakers during oversight hearings. The outcome of these investigations may influence future Department of Justice policies regarding the appointment of special counsels and the transparency of their internal communications and travel.
The next steps for this investigation remain uncertain among committee members. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) stated following the hearing that he believed the congressional investigation had run its course, suggesting that any further action would be for the Department of Justice to consider regarding perjury referrals or disbarment. However, Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-IA) stated the hearing was not the end of his investigative work. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) indicated that if Democrats retake the majority in the next Congress, they would prioritize subpoenaing the currently sealed report regarding the investigation into classified information at Mar-a-Lago. The next term of the Supreme Court is scheduled to begin Monday, October 5, 2026.