A bipartisan group of 160 Members of Congress today called on U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to not upgrade Malaysia in the U.S. Department of State’s soon-to-be-released 2015 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report. Leading the effort were Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Sander Levin (D-MI), Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Eliot Engel (D-NY), Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), author of the law that created the report, and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT). Last week, Reuters reported that the St... Read more

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chairs of the bipartisan Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer’s Disease, today introduced Alzheimer’s Action Now, a package of four bills that together will help Alzheimer’s patients and their families; promote public awareness of Alzheimer’s disease; and encourage voluntary contributions to research efforts. The entire legislative package has been endorsed by the Alzheimer’s Association, the Alzheimer’s Foundation of Ame... Read more

U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04), co-chair of the Bipartisan Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, made the following comments today at a Capitol Hill press conference on recently released video of a Planned Parenthood official discussing baby body parts as commodities to be sold: “Fifteen years ago, I authored the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000—the landmark law that combats the exploitation of human beings, mostly women and children—a cruelty that reduces victims to commodities for sale. “Yes... Read more

U.S. Reps. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Grace Meng (D-NY), and Pete King (R-NY) today reintroduced the bipartisan Federal Disaster Assistance Nonprofit Fairness Act, legislation that would put houses of worship on an even playing field with other non-profit organizations seeking disaster assistance. “Following Superstorm Sandy, we witnessed faith communities serving the needs of their devastated neighborhoods, providing hot food, warm clothes, and shelter—even though many of those houses of worships them... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) met today with Lila Grace Emanuele, 11, of Monmouth County, to speak about her experience with type 1 diabetes and discuss legislative initiatives he is pushing to assist individuals suffering from chronic and debilitating disease. Lila was one of 150 children selected from a pool of 1500 to be delegates in this year’s Children’s Congress, a biennial advocacy initiative sponsored by JDRF, the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes research. The children, age... Read more

The following is an excerpt of a statement today by Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, regarding the announced nuclear agreement with Iran. “Negotiation is not a policy. It's a technique. It's something you use when it's to your advantage, and something that you don't use when it's not to your advantage. “Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton said that, and it was never truer than in the negotiations the Obama Administratio... Read more

Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), has issued the following statement in regards to the Center for Medical Progress’ undercover video depicting Planned Parenthood Federation Senior Director of Medical Services, Dr. Deborah Nucatola, discussing fetal dismemberment and the selling of unborn children’s organs and limbs: “We have known for a long time that Planned Parenthood is Child Abuse Incorporated. The shocking video released today revealing Planned Parenthood’s engagement in selling baby body pa... Read more

By Jonathan Salant of the Star Ledger - When his home in Manasquan was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy, David Armstrong secured a low-interest loan from the Small Business Administration to rebuild it. But when the federal government later offered grants to Sandy victims, Armstrong was out of luck. His $300,000 loan precluded him from getting any of that money. "We had no clue when we signed up and accepted the SBA loan that it would prohibit us from any other types of financial aid," said Armstron... Read more

U.S. Rep. Chris Smith today announced passage of the 21st Century Cures Act (HR 6), bipartisan legislation that will boost funding for biomedical research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), promote interagency data collection and sharing and reform the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to bring new therapies and treatments to market sooner. HR 6 is designed to accelerate the full cycle of discovery, development and delivery of new treatments and cures for patients in need. Smith is co-... Read more

As many as 20 human rights lawyers were reportedly detained today in a countrywide sweep by China’s security forces, including prominent rights defense attorneys such as Wang Yu, Li Heping, Wang Fan, Bao Zhuoxuan, and others. Congressman Chris Smith, Chair of the Global Human Rights Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China “condemned” the detentions saying they were part of an “increasingly muscular campaign to crush dissent... Read more