Schmitt Used Unvetted Texts in Questioning of Jack Smith
publishers 10articles 10first reported 30 Sep, 22:34 UTCdeveloping since 30 Sep · 7 editions
Sen. Eric Schmitt used text messages during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to suggest that former special counsel Jack Smith had colluded with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, despite a warning that the messages had not been verified, MS NOW reported.
During the hearing, the Missouri Republican asserted that Smith attended an Atlanta Hawks basketball game in February 2024 and suggested the alleged visit indicated Smith may have conspired in some way with Willis, whose office investigated whether Donald Trump sought to manipulate Georgia’s 2020 election results. The basketball-game allegation fell apart during the televised exchange, according to MS NOW.
The Justice Department had provided materials to Republican Judiciary Committee staff before Smith’s testimony. Committee Chair Chuck Grassley’s staff prepared a briefing memo but did not include the texts, MS NOW reported, citing a source. The messages also were not shared with Democratic senators before the hearing, according to people cited by the outlet.
Schmitt’s staff sought information connecting Smith’s investigation with Willis’ Georgia inquiry and was given access to the texts. Judiciary Committee staff explicitly told Schmitt’s team that the information was unvetted and that the senator’s office was responsible for verifying it, MS NOW reported, citing a person with direct knowledge of the conversation.
Schmitt’s office and the Justice Department did not immediately respond to the outlet’s requests for comment.
HOW THIS STORY WAS MADE
Reconstructed on 2 October 2026. The machine was off on this day, so no feed was read and no run took place. This edition was rebuilt afterwards from sources that keep history (Google News's dated search, GDELT, Reddit) and from articles the next runs still found, ranked as of the day's end: one edition, not the day's four runs.
Written from 8 articles, headlines and summaries only; 8 independent newsrooms once syndicated copies count as one; the editor revised it.
- Publishers
- 10
- Source articles
- 10
- Given to the writer
- 8, headlines and summaries only
- Independent newsrooms
- 8
- Second model (editor)
- revised
- Publication gate
- passed
- Human review
- none
WHAT THE EDITOR DID
The second model checked the writer's draft against the same sources and changed it before publication. Struck words were in the draft; underlined words are its corrections.
WHAT IT FLAGGED editor revise: Several passages softened or changed specific claims from the source and should be corrected to match MS NOW’s reporting. - "former special counsel Jack Smith had coordinated with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis": The source says Schmitt suggested the texts showed Smith had colluded or conspired with Willis; it does not specifically say he suggested coordination. - "Smith attended an Atlanta Hawks basketball game in February 2024 and suggested the alleged visit indicated possible coordination with Willis": The source says Schmitt suggested Smith may have conspired in some way with Willis; it does not support the narrower wording about possible coordination. - "whose office investigated efforts by Donald Trump and his allies to alter Georgia’s 2020 election results": The source says Willis' probe was into whether Trump sought to manipulate the Georgia election results, not Trump and his allies. - "Schmitt’s staff sought information connecting Smith’s federal investigation with Willis’ Georgia inquiry": The source says Schmitt's staff sought material connecting Smith's investigation with Willis' probe, not specifically Smith's federal investigation.
THE DRAFT AND THE CHANGES
Schmitt Used Unvetted Texts in Questioning of Jack Smith
Sen. Eric Schmitt used text messages during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to suggest that former special counsel Jack Smith had coordinatedcolluded with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, despite a warning that the messages had not been verified, MS NOW reported.
During the hearing, the Missouri Republican asserted that Smith attended an Atlanta Hawks basketball game in February 2024 and suggested the alleged visit indicated possibleSmith coordinationmay have conspired in some way with Willis, whose office investigated efforts bywhether Donald Trump and his alliessought to altermanipulate Georgia’s 2020 election results. The basketball-game allegation fell apart during the televised exchange, according to MS NOW.
The Justice Department had provided materials to Republican Judiciary Committee staff before Smith’s testimony. Committee Chair Chuck Grassley’s staff prepared a briefing memo but did not include the texts, MS NOW reported, citing a source. The messages also were not shared with Democratic senators before the hearing, according to people cited by the outlet.
Schmitt’s staff sought information connecting Smith’s federal investigation with Willis’ Georgia inquiry and was given access to the texts. Judiciary Committee staff explicitly told Schmitt’s team that the information was unvetted and that the senator’s office was responsible for verifying it, MS NOW reported, citing a person with direct knowledge of the conversation.
Schmitt’s office and the Justice Department did not immediately respond to the outlet’s requests for comment.
Written by a language model from the sources above, then checked by a second model that may only cut, attribute or correct. How it works →