WASHINGTON—In a statement issued today, Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Global Human Rights and Co-Chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, renewed his call for transparency and accountability following the elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo which have led to national controversy. “As citizens take to the streets to peacefully challenge the manifest irregularities and delays in vote counting in the Democratic Republic of the Cong... Read more

December marks the 22nd anniversary of enactment into law of the Homeless Veterans Comprehensive Assistance Act (Public Law 107-95)—the historic law authored by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) to create a whole-of-government approach to mitigate and ultimately end veterans homelessness. Smith’s pivotal legislation was the first comprehensive law directed at ending chronic homelessness among American veterans. It included provisions that strengthened domiciliary care programs, authorized important job t... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-Manchester) today announced the winners of the 2023 Congressional App Challenge for the Fourth District of New Jersey. The annual competition hosted by Smith is aimed at promoting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) skills among high school students and emphasizes the importance of these skills for the future, especially in areas of the US econo my like cybersecurity and intellectual property. “Congratulations to Charlie Brekke, Jordan Denzler, and Garrett Steme... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) and Co-Chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, today issued the following statement on the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “Today marks the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, also known as the UDHR. This landmark document sought to acknowledge universal principles that undergird human dignity in the wake of the genocidal horrors of ... Read more

Reps. Chris Smith (R-NJ) this week introduced a resolution (HRes 915) urging the Government of Ukraine to resume adoptions of Ukrainian children by US citizens, which were suspended in March 2021 following Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. The resolution is co-sponsored by Rep. Donald Norcross (D-NJ). “International adoption can be a profoundly beneficial way to unite children in need of parents with families that are eager and able to open their hearts and homes to children, providing t... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-Manchester), Co-Chair of the House Task Force for Combating Antisemitism, today reaffirmed his strong support for House Resolution 894—Strongly condemning and denouncing the drastic rise of antisemitism in the United States and around the world. “Israel is the only state in the world whose fundamental right to exist, within any borders at all, is openly denied by other states,” said Smith, Co-Chair of the Israel Allies Caucus. “Some of them including Iran even call for Israe... Read more

A Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) hearing chaired by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) on China’s use of forced labor in its deep sea fishing fleet and fish processing not only revealed how such fish taints our supply chain and hurts the US fishing industry, but also has prompted human rights and other nongovernmental organizations to petition the World Health Organization to act against the Chinese government’s illegal actions. “China has created unfair, unethical competitive advantag... Read more

At a congressional hearing chaired by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) today, members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and exiled prisoners of conscience and their relatives made an urgent appeal for the immediate and unconditional release of imprisoned Catholic Bishop Rolando Álvarez—the only known cleric to remain incarcerated by Nicaraguan dictator Daniel Ortega and his brutal regime. “Today we appeal to President Daniel Ortega—let imprisoned Catholic Bishop Rolando Álvarez go,” said Smith, Cha... Read more

Reps. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Doug Lamborn (R-CO), who both serve as Co-Chairs on the Congressional Israel Allies Caucus, issued the following statement on the recent vote at the United Nations to authorize and fund the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Human Rights Practices: “As Co-Chairmen of the Bipartisan Congressional Israel Allies Caucus, we were dismayed to learn that Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro—alone among all European countries—chose to vote in favor of authorizing and fun... Read more

The following are excerpts of remarks by Rep. Chris Smith (R-Manchester), Co-Chair of the Israel Allies Caucus and senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, during today’s debate on the House Floor in support of H.Res. 888—Reaffirming the State of Israel’s right to exist: “Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 888, reaffirming the State of Israel’s right to exist. I thank my good friend from New York, Mike Lawler, for introducing this timely, extremely important, and ever... Read more