Chris Smith (New Jersey politician)
Christopher Henry Smith | |
|---|---|
| File:ChrisSmith.jpg | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 4, 1953 |
| Nationality | american |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | spouse |
Christopher Henry Smith (born March 4, 1953 in Rahway, New Jersey) is a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives for the 4th District of New Jersey (map).
Smith, owner of a sporting goods company, first ran for Congress in 1978, but was routed by Democratic incumbent Frank Thompson, Jr.. In 1980, however, Thompson was ensnared in the Abscam scandal, and Smith ran against him again. This was enough to sweep Smith into office. He faced a tough challenge for a second term, but hasn't faced a well-funded opponent since then.
Smith's voting record is moderate, aside from a strong stance against abortion. He is the Co-Chairman of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus. In a January 22, 2004 press release [1] Smith stated, "Americans want the abortion holocaust to end," and referred to abortion as "child slaughter."
Unlike most Republicans, Smith has strong ties to organized labor. Following representation from many Irish-Americans, Smith wrote legislation prohibiting the Royal Ulster Constabulary from training in the United States because of alleged humans rights abuses. Critics of Smith's law state that if the Royal Ulster Constabulary were provided with American training, human rights abuses could have been avoided. Nonetheless, in December 2001 the Bush administration declared the Police Service of Northern Ireland (which replaced the RUC) met reasonable human rights standards, and the prohibition was lifted. Smith has spoken critically of the British Inquiries Act 2005, which he believes will allow the British government to prevent effective inquiries into British army collusion with unionist paramilitaries in Ireland.
In 2004, Smith easily defeated Democrat Amy Vasquez for his 13th 2-year term.
Trivia
In 1982, Smith faced his toughest reelection campaign when he was challenged by former New Jersey State Senate President Joseph P. Merlino. At the end of one of their debates, Smith approached Merlino to exchange pleasantries, Merlino was quoted as saying "Beat it, kid." Smith won the election with 53% of the vote.[2]