One week. Two Eric Schmitts.

By Jason Hancock | Editor-in-Chief

Good morning,

U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt went looking for a gotcha moment Tuesday and instead created one for himself.

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Schmitt accused former special counsel Jack Smith of perjury, called him a “villain” and said he would go down as a “total dirtbag.” But Schmitt’s accusation rested on a basic mistake: He confused the Atlanta Hawks with the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Ashley Murray has the full story on the hearing, where Smith defended his Trump investigations as Republicans accused him of weaponizing the Justice Department.

Meanwhile, I look at what Schmitt’s blunder says about the politician he has become. Just one day earlier, he had helped pass a bipartisan college sports bill after months of negotiation with Democrats.

by Ashley Murray

Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt bungled the perjury accusations against Jack Smith by mixing up the names of the Atlanta Hawks and Iowa Hawkeyes basketball teams. The back-and-forth went viral on social media.

by Jason Hancock

Tuesday showed the Eric Schmitt who has increasingly defined his national political career: certain of his enemies’ bad faith, eager to escalate and willing to reach the verdict before all the facts are in.

by Annelise Hanshaw

A Cole County Circuit Court judge will decide whether to strike down a 2024 law allowing charter schools in Boone County, a case that could further define Missouri’s constitutional ban on special laws.

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