News | U.S. Representative

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) speaks at CPAC's 4th Annual International Summit to Combat Human Trafficking on July 22, 2026.

Committee Hearing Opening Statements

Opening statement of Co-Chairman Smith at CECC hearingA Son and Daughter’s Appeal to Xi Jinping to Release Their Dad, Jimmy Lai
September 16, 2026
The following are excerpts of Co-Chairman Chris Smith’s (R-NJ) opening statement at the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC)’s September 16th hearing, entitled “A Son and Daughter’s Appeal to Xi Jinping to Release Their Dad, Jimmy Lai”: Today’s hearing is about Jimmy Lai—and an earnest appeal to Xi Jinping from Jimmy’s children to set him free on humanitarian grounds. They are grateful that President Trump has personally raised Jimmy Lai’s release with Xi Jinping, and they respect... More

Press Release

Hyde Amendment violations & transparency failures revealedNew GAO report: Taxpayers bankrolled Obamacare health insurance plans covering elective abortions for 4.4 million individuals in 2026
September 15, 2026
A new report from the U.S. government’s nonpartisan watchdog agency revealed that federal taxpayers subsidized 1,719 Affordable Care Act (ACA) Qualified Health Plans (QHPs) that covered elective abortions for an estimated 4.4 million individuals this year alone. The report also showed that 683 more abortion-covering QHPs were available through the ACA than when GAO issued a similar brief in 2014. The recent report, compiled by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), was requested by House a... More

Article

The Daily Wire exclusive article on Smith-requested report'EXCLUSIVE: Obamacare Plans Use Taxpayer Dollars For Abortions, Watchdog Finds'
September 15, 2026

By Mary Margaret Olohan Published September 15, 2026 WASHINGTON—A nonpartisan federal watchdog on Tuesday revealed that Obamacare subsidizes abortions, upending a longtime Democrat talking point, The Daily Wire can first report. Nearly a third of Affordable Care Act plans cover abortions, the Government Accountability Office found. Of the 6,655 qualified health plans offered on Obamacare exchanges, 1,719 cover “non-excepted abortion services,” meaning elective abortions that are not the result o... More

Article

Washington Examiner article on Smith-requested report'GAO finds millions of Obamacare enrollees have abortions covered'
September 15, 2026

By Rena Rowe Published September 15, 2026 1:32pm ET A new report from the Government Accountability Office found that federal premium tax credits have helped subsidize Affordable Care Act health plans that cover abortions for millions of enrollees this year. The GAO found that 1,719 of the 6,655 ACA plans available nationwide in 2026, or roughly 26%, covered abortions. Those plans covered an estimated 4.4 million people. That is an increase of 683 plans from the number GAO found in a similar rev... More

Article

National Review article on Smith-requested report'One in Four Obamacare Plans Cover Elective Abortions Despite Hyde Amendment Restrictions, GAO Finds'
September 15, 2026

By Kamden Mulder Published September 15, 2026 5:42 PM Twenty-six percent of Obamacare exchange plans cover elective abortions, even as the Hyde Amendment prohibits federal funds from being used to pay for such procedures, according to a new Government Accountability Office report. The Hyde Amendment only allows federal money to be used to pay for abortions under limited circumstances: when the life of the mother is at risk, or when the pregnancy is the product of rape or incest. But the GAO repo... More