Smith denies attending an Atlanta Hawks game
Jack SmithFormer special counsel, testifying under oath before the Senate Judiciary Committee
Sen. Eric Schmitt asks former special counsel Jack Smith about an NBA game in Atlanta, Smith answers, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar responds, at the Senate Judiciary Committee's Sept. 29, 2026 hearing.
Excerpt from about 1:50:45 to 1:57:57 of the Senate Judiciary Committee's archived video of the hearing. The C-SPAN recording cited for this source shows the same exchange. DI added its logo in the corner.
Video: U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Public domain (U.S. government work) (opens in a new tab)
Watch the full original video (opens in a new tab) (relevant passage: Clip runtime 0:00-7:11. Sen. Schmitt's opening question and the text-message poster exchange run from 0:00-1:35. Jack Smith's Maryland-Iowa clarification and Sen. Klobuchar's on-the-record correction run from approximately 5:20-7:11.)
Smith said he definitely did not go to a Hawks game, said he had no recollection of going to Atlanta while he was special counsel, and said no when asked whether he ever met Nathan Wade or Fani Willis in that role.
Responding to
Sen. Eric Schmitt implied that Jack Smith attended a Golden State Warriors versus Atlanta Hawks NBA game in Atlanta on February 3, 2024, asking Smith whether he had gone to the game and displaying a poster of text messages he described as coming from Smith's team.
“I definitely did not go to a Hawks game. I'm sure of that.”
Original video
Other statements by Jack Smith in this case
- Smith says he recalls a Maryland game where Caitlin Clark playedSame day: Challenged the characterization
Where this statement fits
Did Jack Smith Attend the Warriors-Hawks Game Eric Schmitt Asked About?
At a September 29, 2026 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on his conduct as special counsel, Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) asked former special counsel Jack Smith, "Did you go to an NBA game between the Golden State Warriors and the Atlanta Hawks on February 3rd, 2024?" Schmitt described the date as the day after Fani Willis and Nathan Wade "announced their affair," displayed a poster of text messages he described as coming from Smith's team, and said, "I think you've already perjured yourself." Smith said he definitely did not go to a Hawks game and had no recollection of going to Atlanta. He later said that, if the poster referred to the correct game, he recalled attending a University of Maryland basketball game where Caitlin Clark was playing around that time, and that the date could be checked. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) said Schmitt had the teams wrong and, at the end of her questioning time, that the accusation deserved an apology. Schmitt said "I stand by that statement" without specifying which statement, and told NBC News after the hearing that whether Smith perjured himself would be "up to a prosecutor to determine." The dispute is whether Smith attended the game Schmitt named.
Source and context
Original video
About this source
C-SPAN video clip of the September 29, 2026 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing at which Jack Smith testified. The clip covers Sen. Eric Schmitt's questions about Smith's attendance at a February 3, 2024 basketball game, Smith's denial and later clarification, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar's real-time correction. DI reviewed the audio directly to verify the exact wording of this exchange rather than relying on news paraphrase.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Watch the clip from this source at the top of the page.
Before the quotation
Schmitt asked Smith whether he went to a Warriors-Hawks NBA game in Atlanta on February 3, 2024, and tied the date to the disclosure of Fani Willis's relationship with prosecutor Nathan Wade.
After the quotation
Schmitt then described a series of text messages from Smith's team, displayed a poster of them, and said he thought Smith had already perjured himself.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Smith directly denies the specific factual claim Schmitt put to him about attending the Hawks game and being in Atlanta.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- Eric Schmitt
More from this case
Read the full caseDurbin asks Grassley to apologize to Smith
“apologize to Mr. Smith on behalf of the Committee for the unacceptable personal attacks and false accusations of perjury”Read statement
Schmitt tells NBC News it is "up to a prosecutor to determine" whether Smith perjured himself
“We’ll find out. That’s going to be up to a prosecutor to determine. My job here today was to ask questions and get answers.”Read statement
Klobuchar says Schmitt's accusation and dirtbag remark deserve an apology
“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”Read statement
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- Smith denies attending an Atlanta Hawks game
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The Dispute Index. "Smith denies attending an Atlanta Hawks game". First published: 2026-09-29. Last updated: 2026-09-29. https://disputeindex.com/events/3289-smith-said-he-definitely-did-not-go-to