NowWire · AI-assisted reporting summary · October 1, 2026 UTC
Unvetted Texts Lead to Imploding Hearing
Republican staff on the Senate Judiciary Committee warned Senator Eric Schmitt that text messages obtained from the Justice Department were unvetted before a hearing featuring former special counsel Jack Smith, according to a source with direct knowledge. Despite the warning that verification was their responsibility, Schmitt and his team used the materials to suggest Smith had colluded with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis by attending an Atlanta Hawks basketball game on February 3, 2024. [1]
A Mix-Up Over Basketball Games
During the hearing, Schmitt insisted the texts proved Smith was in Atlanta, going so far as to accuse him of perjury. Smith quickly clarified that he had instead attended a women's college basketball game between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland, on the exact same date. A basic check would have revealed that the seat number referenced in the texts did not even exist in the Atlanta arena, leaving Schmitt's allegations to unravel on live television. [1]
Sources
- Eric Schmitt was warned about the Jack Smith texts. He used them anyway. — 2026-09-30T22:46:09+00:00
