If President Donald Trump truly wanted to see Kaitlan Collins smile, he should have tuned into CNN on Tuesday night.
The president’s favorite journalist was all smirks on “The Source” as she covered Sen. Eric Schmitt’s (R-Mo.) humiliating self-own during former special counsel Jack Smith’s testimony earlier that day. Collins — who was very tickled by Sen. Katie Britt’s (R-Ala.) real-time reaction during the hearing — ultimately summed up the entire catastrophe with just one sentence.
“It is easily one of the most classic moments in Capitol Hill testimony history,” an amused Collins said.
During the hearing, Schmitt asked Smith, “Did you go to an NBA game between the Golden State Warriors and the Atlanta Hawks on Feb. 3, 2024?”
After a very bewildered Smith said he had not, Schmitt began to explain his line of questioning by saying the game occurred in Atlanta a day after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis admitted to an affair with Nathan Wade, another prosecutor. At the time of the revelation, Willis, like Smith, was in the middle of prosecution efforts against Trump for his interference in the 2020 presidential election.
Schmitt also brought what he thought was proof in the form of screenshot texts from Smith’s staff that said he was at a “Hawks” game that day.
But what Schmitt thought was going to be a slam dunk ended up looking more like someone scoring in the wrong hoop, because after some back-and-forth, Smith eventually realized he did go to a Hawks game on that day — but it wasn’t in Atlanta … or even an NBA game.
Instead, he attended an Iowa Hawkeyes game in Maryland to see rising star Caitlin Clark, now in the WNBA, playing against the Maryland Terrapins in a women’s college basketball game.
Progressive outlet MeidasTouch even dug up and shared footage of Smith at the Iowa vs. Maryland game on Feb. 3, 2024, with HuffPost confirming his identity with a spokesperson for Smith.
After rolling a few clips of Schmitt confusing the Atlanta Hawks with the Iowa Hawkeyes on her CNN show, Collins — who was trying her best not to laugh — asked one of her guests, Democratic strategist Paul Begala, what he thought of this mess.
“Oh, bless his heart, Sen. Schmitt,” Begala said mockingly before getting even more sarcastic. “I’m glad they did it, OK? Because now we can see what a mental giant Sen. Schmitt is.”
“It’s spectacularly stupid,” Begala added. “I have to say. On top of that, having the hearing at all is spectacularly stupid. With 35 days to the election, gas is $4.50 a gallon, diesel is $6.50 a gallon, ground beef is $6.92 a pound. … If you thought that people wanted change and they’re sick of Republicans before this hearing, they’re going to be a lot more sick of them after.”
Collin’s other guest, Republican strategist Shermichael Singleton, echoed Begala’s sentiments, hammering home that Republicans need to focus on affordability leading up to the midterm elections in November.
When Collins asked Singleton if he thought Republicans should have invited Smith to Capitol Hill, an annoyed Singleton shot back with: “For what?! What in the hell are we getting out of this?!”