Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04) took to the House floor this afternoon to support and call for House passage of The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. Smith, co-chair of the Bipartisan Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, gave the following remarks on the floor: Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. “Mr./Madam Speaker, I thank my good friend and colleague for yielding. “Mr. Speaker, pain, we all dread it. We avoid it. We even fear it. And we all go to extraordinary lengths to mitigate its severity and its d... Read more

Boko Haram, with its chilling brutality, radical Islamic ideology and unstoppable seizure of Nigerian territory is quickly emerging as the Islamic State of Africa. While much of the world has focused on the terror attacks in Paris and the Islamic militants' capture of swaths of Syria and Iraq, Boko Haram has gone on a bloody rampage through northeastern Nigeria. Human rights groups have sounded alarms about the al-Qaeda-linked organization's recent brutality: the slaughter of up to 2,000 people ... Read more

Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04) today honored the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as the nation marks the federal holiday on Monday, January 19, 2015 in remembrance of an American who gave his life to the cause of justice and civil rights. “Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a vital part of our national heritage,” said Smith. “It is celebrated in recognition of the character, accomplishments and ideals of a man who remains an irreplaceable part of the American endeavor to fight for the liberty and d... Read more

“The recent attacks in Paris and Nigeria remind us again that religious freedom and religious engagement need to be central pillars of U.S. foreign policy and national security strategy—we ignore this fact at our peril,” said Cong. Chris Smith, (NJ-04) Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Human Rights. “Too many people are jailed, suffer, or die for their faith every year,” said Smith. “There is mounting evidence showing that countries which restrict religious freedom experience hi... Read more

A bill to address the tragic suicide rate of the nation’s veterans was approved by the House tonight 403-0 and should be taken up by the Senate as soon as possible, said Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), former chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee and an original cosponsor or the bill. “The men and women of our military make tremendous, selfless sacrifices on behalf of a grateful nation,” said Smith, who chaired the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee from 2001-2005 and authored more ... Read more

BY APP STAFF WRITER AMANDA OGLESBY - TUCKERTON – Holly Austin Smith thought she was running away from her Tuckerton home to a better life. She found, instead, a life of forced prostitution on the streets of Atlantic City. She was 14 years old in 1992 when she ran away from her family, from a future at Pinelands Regional High School that frightened her, and from friends who bullied her. During the summer between the eighth and ninth grades, Smith met a man in his early 30s at the Hamilton Mall in... Read more

BY AMIR KAHN, U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT STAFF- Autism is on the rise: More than 1.5 million people have the condition in the United States alone. But because the majority of these people are younger than 22, the country is on the verge of an “autism tsunami” that could leave thousands without the support they need as they become adults, according to Autism Speaks, an autism advocacy organization. “The current system we have right now is woefully inadequate,” says Angela Lello, director of housing... Read more

In response to the death on Christmas Day of Fr. Gleb Yakunin, a Russian Orthodox priest and human rights activist for 50 years, Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) released the following statement: “Fr. Gleb was a courageous man – in the Soviet years, as one of the leaders of the brave and beleaguered Russian human rights movement, he risked his life in order to speak the truth. I am happy to have had him as a friend. I remember long hours spent in his apartment in Moscow, learning about the scope and met... Read more

U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04), a vocal critic of President Obama’s decision to embrace the Castro regime after decades of human rights abuses, including the harboring of fugitives, appearred on Fox News Channel today reiterated his call to Cuba to extradite Joanne Chesimard, the convicted murderer of New Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster. Smith noted the long record of human rights violations of Fidel Castro and Raul Castro, and has said the Castro brothers should be tried at The Hague for th... Read more

BY RUSS ZIMMER, ASBURY PARK PRESS - Thousands of superstorm Sandy victims didn't know where to turn when they ran into issues with their flood insurance providers. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is announcing today that a new, independent consumer advocate will be activated next week for just that purpose. The Office of the Flood Insurance Advocate was established as part of the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014 that was passed earlier this year, but hadn't yet been op... Read more