Former special counsel Jack Smith faced a hostile Senate Judiciary Committee last week, but the most aggressive attack—a perjury accusation from Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.)—collapsed when the evidence contradicted the senator's claim. Smith, who led two federal prosecutions against President Trump, was grilled by Republicans who accused him of political bias and misconduct. But Schmitt's specific allegation, centered on a basketball game, unraveled in a moment that Democrats seized on as a humiliation for the GOP.
Schmitt asked Smith whether he attended an NBA game between the Golden State Warriors and the Atlanta Hawks on Feb. 3, 2024—the day after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and her deputy Nathan Wade acknowledged their affair. Smith replied that he had no recollection of being in Atlanta and was certain he didn't attend the game. When Schmitt pressed, suggesting he had text messages placing Smith there, Smith asked to see the evidence. Schmitt refused and accused Smith of perjury.
But Smith's response was telling: he recalled being at a University of Maryland basketball game that same weekend, where Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes played the Terrapins. Video footage confirmed Smith was in the stands at that game, not at a Warriors-Hawks matchup. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) pointed out the discrepancy, saying, "You had teams wrong, sir." Schmitt, visibly frustrated, accused Klobuchar of trying to "rehabilitate the witness," a standard legal tactic.
The episode underscored the broader political theater of the hearing, where Republicans sought to portray Smith as a rogue prosecutor who overreached in his investigations of Trump. Smith, however, stood by his work, stating, "Our investigation proved beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in serious crimes against our nation." He added that he would prosecute a former president again regardless of party.
Smith's tenure was marked by two high-profile indictments: one over Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election, and another over his handling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. Both cases were dismissed after Trump's reelection, due to Justice Department policy against prosecuting a sitting president. Smith had been appointed in November 2022, days after Trump announced his 2024 candidacy, and critics argue he moved too slowly, delaying the Jan. 6 indictment until August 2023.
The Supreme Court's July 2024 ruling on presidential immunity further complicated the election case, narrowing the scope of conduct that could be prosecuted. Smith's team obtained a new indictment, but it was ultimately dropped. Legal analysts note that while Smith's prosecutions failed to secure convictions, his record is not without merit—he did secure convictions in other cases, including the classified documents case against two Trump co-defendants.
The hearing also featured text messages that undercut Schmitt's perjury claim, as well as criticism from Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) who said Schmitt "disgraced himself." The basketball blunder became a focal point, drawing attention away from substantive policy questions.
Smith's testimony came amid a broader GOP effort to investigate the Biden administration's handling of various matters, including the Trump administration's push for an AI portal and health summit. But the hearing's most memorable moment was the basketball mix-up, which many saw as symbolic of the GOP's inability to land a decisive blow against Smith.
While Smith's performance was not without criticism—he failed to bring Trump to trial—he left the hearing with his credibility intact, at least on the perjury charge. The episode may not change minds, but it provided a rare moment of clarity in a politically charged environment.
