U.S. Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04) today presented military service medals to Al Salazar, 93, of Wall Township, NJ, for his service in World War II, including the invasion of Normandy. Mr. Salazar served under both General Omar Bradley and later Lt. General George Patton. Among his critical duties were operating as “the radio man” and sending Morse code signals. “It was 73 years ago this week that Mr. Salazar landed in Europe as a 20-year-old young man,” said Smith, the former Chairman of the ... Read more

A Service Academy Information Night will be held Wednesday, April 26, 2017, from 5:30 to 7:30 at Naval Weapons Station Earle, 201 Highway 34 in Colts Neck, NJ, announced Congressman Christopher H. Smith (NJ-04). The event is for any high school or college student (and their parents, counselors or educators) residing in the Fourth Congressional District who is interested in learning about competing for a nomination to one of the United States Service Academies. Each institution plays an integral ... Read more

There is nothing new about Congress being deadlocked on important issues facing the nation. But the divisions have deepened and the rancor has intensified over the past several years. And as the poll numbers on the accompanying chart show, the divisions apparent in Washington largely reflect those same divisions among Republicans and Democrats all across America. An April 2016 Pew Research Center poll provided a snapshot of the contempt that partisans have for their opponents. Forty-one percent ... Read more

By Staff Writer Sulaiman Abdur-Rahman - Unresolved hate crimes like the racially motivated murder of black Chicago teen Emmett Till, who was abducted, beat down and shot to death during a family visit to Mississippi in 1955, have inspired a group of Hightstown High School students to lobby Congress into action. When Midwest Congressman Bobby Rush (D-Illinois) introduced the Civil Rights Cold Case Record Collections Act of 2017 into the U.S. House of Representatives on March 1, the bill was actua... Read more

High school students who live in the Fourth Congressional District can now sign up for the 2017 national Congressional Art Competition hosted by Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04). The deadline to notify Congressman Smith of intent to enter is April 18 for current high school student artwork recently completed or specifically created just for the competition, that meet the originality, suitability, size and other entry guidelines of the national competition. “Each year the students’ artwork is impr... Read more

Today, Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) and Rep. Earl Blumenauer (OR-03) released a letter signed by over 170 Members of Congress calling for robust funding levels to support key animal welfare programs. As the letter notes, proper federal spending now not only protects animals, it also improves human safety and reduces long term spending. “I believe that animals must be treated humanely and have long supported the enactment of and adequate funding for programs to ensure that goal. Strong enforcement me... Read more

In response to the suicide bombings of Coptic Christian worshipers on Palm Sunday in Egypt, Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Africa and Global Human Rights, released the following statement: In December, more than two dozen worshipers were killed during a Coptic liturgy in Cairo. Last month, scores of Christians fled a wave of terrorist shootings and arson attacks in their hometowns in the Sinai. I personally raised this crisis for Copts with President el-Sisi in W... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations, released the following statement on Syria: I commend President Trump for assertively acting against the Syrian regime for its barbaric chemical weapons attack on the men, women and children of Khan Sheikhoun. These operations against the air base will hopefully degrade the chemical weapons capabilities of the regime and deter it from repeating such attacks. ... Read more

Tonight, millions of Americans will kiss their child good night and fall asleep knowing that they will be able to do the same tomorrow. Unfortunately, for an alarming number of parents, this version of the American dream is impossible — for now — as their children are half way around the world, illegally abducted to a foreign land, leaving the American parent left behind and struggling to understand what can be done. Between 2008 and 2015, nearly 10,000 children were abducted overseas by a paren... Read more

Today, Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) chaired a hearing entitled, “Enforcement is Not Optional: The Goldman Act to Return Abducted American Children,” to give a voice to families suffering from international parental child abduction—inviting the new Administration to make these cases a priority and use Smith’s law, the Goldman Act, to finally bring them home. “Congress unanimously adopted the Goldman Act in 2014 to ensure that any Administration takes effective action when a country refuses to return ... Read more