A man jailed since July for a death threat against U.S. Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) pleaded guilty Friday in a Monmouth County New Jersey Court. On July 26, Mr. DeReal Finklin, 43, posted threatening messages online including “Dead Man Walking” next to a picture of Congressman Smith. According to the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, Mr. Finklin, pled guilty to Cyber Harassment, a 4th degree felony. As a part of his factual basis he stated that he knowingly used his Facebook account, Israe... Read more

Joining fellow advocates and supporters from throughout the Monmouth and Ocean County region in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease, Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) today addressed more than a thousand marchers and helped cut the ribbon at the start of the Alzheimer’s Association 2018 Walk to End Alzheimer's, held in his congressional district in Bradley Beach. Smith is the co-founder and co-chairman of the Bipartisan Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer's disease, and a long-time advocate for Alzhe... Read more

Congressman Chris Smith met Friday with officials from Ocean Community Economic Action Now, Inc. (OCEAN Inc.) and its affiliate Lakewood Economic Action Program, Inc. (LEAP) to discuss their federally-supported social services for the Ocean County region. Smith was invited by Channell Wilkins, Chief Executive Officer of OCEAN Inc. Community Action Agency, headquartered at 40 Washington Street Toms River, NJ, and LEAP Board member Samuel Rabinowitz to discuss head Start's plan to consolidate oper... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, issued the following statement on the Ethiopian government’s arrests of human rights lawyers Henok Aklilu and Michael Melake: “I am concerned by the Ethiopian government’s recent arrest of human rights lawyers Henok Aklilu and Michael Melake, and am worried that it may signal backsliding. I hope and expect that Ethiopian authorities will afford them due process and fair treatment, and that Prime Minister Abiy ... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chairman of the U.S. Helsinki Commission, issued the following statement on the confirmation of John Cotton Richmond as the next Ambassador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons: “Ambassador Richmond has demonstrated a strong commitment to thorough research and evidence-based action on sex and labor trafficking. These traits will serve him well as he oversees the development of the State Department’s annual Trafficking in Persons Report—our most succes... Read more

House Foreign Affairs Global Health Subcommittee Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), Ranking Member Eliot Engel (D-NY), and Global Health Subcommittee Ranking Member Karen Bass (D-CA) today released a bipartisan report outlining problems with USAID’s largest-ever contract that jeopardized access to life-saving health commodities and wasted taxpayer dollars. The report, entitled “Oversight Investigation: USAID Global Health Supply Chain Contract,” concludes a year-long co... Read more

U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) today honored Walter Pruiksma, a hero who, 74 years ago, braved a nighttime run on a horse-drawn, two-wheel wooden cart through German lines to bring an injured French woman to a hospital only three days after he had landed on Utah Beach in the wake of the D-Day invasion. U.S. Army Reserve Maj. Gen. Phillip Churn came from Washington to present him with the Silver Marechaussee Award, one of the highest honors that can be bestowed on a military policeman (MP) by the... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Global Human Rights and Co-Chairman of the U.S. Helsinki Commission, released the following statement on the release of Pastor Andrew Brunson from house arrest in Turkey: “I am overjoyed that Pastor Andrew Brunson is finally free from his cruel and unjust imprisonment and house arrest, and is coming home safely to the U.S. For almost two years he was the victim of efforts by President Erdogan and the Turkish state to crack down on re... Read more

Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) announced on Thursday that Brookdale Community College in Lincroft will receive a $95,334 grant from the Department of Education for its cybersecurity program. “Cybersecurity training is absolutely critical to national security, now and in the coming years, and I am pleased to announce that Brookdale Community College’s cybersecurity program will have even more resources available to equip students with solid training and skills,” Smith said. “Brookdale’s new FIPSE... Read more

Today’s announced 2.8 percent Social Security Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) increase for seniors is better than last year, but still not reflective of the real cost-of-living increases seniors face, said Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), who is pushing for legislation to establish a more accurate cost-of-living adjustment mechanism for seniors. “While a 2.8 percent increase is an improvement upon the previous benefits, the reality is that it still does not meet the needs of today’s seniors,” Smith sai... Read more