Stephanie Schmid Calls Out Rep. Smith’s Failed Leadership for Voting Against the HEROES Act

On May 15th, Chris Smith voted against the HEROES Act, a bill that will provide critical resources for the people of New Jersey. By voting no, Smith voted against support for our state and local governments, he voted against providing job security for our police officers, firefighters and teachers, and he opposed funding for the testing and tracing that is essential to be able to safely reopen our economy.

Additionally, by voting no Smith voted against eliminating the $10,000 cap on the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction for 2020 and 2021—which would repeal legislation that his party enacted for the purpose of harming New Jersey’s middle class homeowners.

New Jersey has been hit particularly hard by COVID-19, with the second highest death toll in the country and thousands of people unemployed. But since Smith hasn’t set foot in our community since this crisis began, he doesn’t understand our suffering or our needs. Once again, our absentee Congressman is failing to support us when it matters most.

“Now more than ever, we need a representative that will work with our state’s delegation to provide critical resources for the people of New Jersey, not play partisan politics,” Smith’s Democratic opponent, Stephanie Schmid said. “Rep. Smith has voted against our best interests time and time again—consistently prioritizing his own or his party’s agenda—rather than our community. His vote against the HEROES Act at a time when we are suffering and in need of urgent aid demonstrates his unfitness to serve as our Congressman. New Jersey’s 4th District deserves so much better. As our next Congresswoman, I will stand up and fight for our families, our small business owners, and our frontline workers every single day. I will use both my voice and my vote to ensure that our community is well-represented in Washington and that we have access to the resources we need before, during, and after a global crisis.”

Stephanie is a New Jersey native, a retired U.S. Foreign Service Officer and Diplomat who served our country overseas on behalf of the U.S. Department of State,and  a human rights litigation attorney and advocate. She’s running to bring new leadership to Congress at a time when we need our leaders to solve pressing challenges and create opportunities for the people of New Jersey.