But What Can You Do? tracks where 2026 candidates stand on U.S. weapons and funding for the government of Israel. How we check
Jason Smith
- Backed with $30K by PACs we track that support U.S. weapons funding for the government of Israel (lifetime)
- Endorsed by AIPAC
No statement from Smith explaining his votes on aid to the government of Israel has been located since January 2024. Since then he has used his committee chairmanship to pursue the tax-exempt status of groups he accuses of supporting Hamas.
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You asked Jason Smith where they stand.
Deep Dive
Smith has represented Missouri's 8th District since 2013 and chairs the House Ways and Means Committee.
What he has done since is use the Ways and Means chairmanship. In June 2024 he pledged to use the committee's authority against the tax-exempt status of non-profit and media organisations he accuses of supporting or funding Hamas, and he asked the IRS to revoke the status of nine non-profits. He has held hearings on campus antisemitism and pressed universities on their own tax exemptions.
In September 2024, after six hostages were killed, he wrote that "anyone with a sliver of decency would agree that Hamas is pure evil," and criticised demonstrations in the United States where he said groups paint slogans including "from the river to the sea" and burn the American flag.
His recorded votes appear as badges on this card.
The record
Supported sending weapons or funding in 6 of 6 tracked votes
• Vote record imported from official House Clerk roll calls for H.R. 6126, H.R. 8034, and H.R. 8369. Other position fields remain under investigation.
How this mark works
We track key votes on sending U.S. weapons and money to the government of Israel. A check means every tracked vote they cast came down against sending more, on the side of peace and de-escalation. A question mark means a mixed record: they sided with sending up to half of the time. An X means they voted to send more weapons and money in over half of their tracked votes, even as the way those weapons and dollars were being used became more and more obvious. At exactly half, money this election cycle from a lobbying group we track, or an endorsement from a group that backs sending weapons, makes it an X. Only votes actually cast are counted. Where a candidate has no recorded votes on these bills, the mark comes instead from a reviewed reading of their public record (money from the lobbying groups we track, endorsements, and their own words since January 26, 2024). There an X also covers fully backing the conduct of the war by the government of Israel without significant reservations, and a question mark also covers speaking about Israel without saying clearly where they stand on U.S. weapons and funding. A dash means No Position Found: we found nothing in their own words about Israel, Gaza or the war.
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Voted to send weapons or funding in more than half of their recorded tracked votes. (Supported sending weapons or funding in 6 of 6 tracked votes.)
The money
$30K in lifetime support from the five lobbying groups we track
In their words
AIPAC (2026 endorsement)
Research log
The notes behind this card: what we looked at, what we found, and where each item came from.
U.S. military aid and weapons to Israel
- **No statement located in the position band** (from 2024-01-26) in which he addresses U.S. weapons, funding or conditions for Israel. His recorded votes appear as badges on this card and are uniform.
- [After October 7, 2023-10-13] "Standing with Israel", as reported: whether through weapons, aid or intelligence, the United States must ensure Israel has all necessary resources to complete its mission against Hamas. From the weeks right after October 7; not used on the card. Not opened.
- [After October 7, 2023-11-03] Statement applauding the emergency defence package, opened and confirmed word for word: "As one of our oldest allies and the sole democracy in the Middle East, Israel needs our support now more than ever as they work to push back against the unprovoked and barbaric terrorist attack by Hamas. The successful passage of this legislation in the House is a testament to the special and longstanding relationship between the United States and Israel." From the weeks right after October 7, so research page only. **This is his fullest statement on U.S. assistance to Israel anywhere in the record, and its date is what keeps it out of the card summary.**
U.S. aid to Palestinians
- No statement or documented position located.
Characterization of the conflict
- [Position, 2024-09-06] "Standing up to antisemitism", opened and confirmed word for word: "Anyone with a sliver of decency would agree that Hamas is pure evil. But as we've seen at so-called 'pro-Palestinian protests' across the country, far too many people here in the U.S. support Hamas and its evil goal of wiping Israel - and millions of innocent people - off the face of the earth. These hate-filled groups spray paint awful phrases like 'Death to America', 'Hamas is coming', and 'from the river to the sea' on public property. They take down the American flag, burn it, and replace it with the Palestinian flag."
- [Position, 2026-03-09] Missourinet reports that he characterised joint U.S. and Israeli action against Iran as directed at an "extremist Islamic dictatorship" rather than the Iranian people. **That host served 548 bytes to every request **, so it could not be read and the phrase is not quoted on the card.
- [After October 7, 2023-10-11] Statement calling the attacks a "terror campaign, pure and simple" and saying "this is not the time for appeasement, for de-escalation, or for Israel to stand down." From the weeks right after October 7. Not opened.
Related rhetoric and lobbying
- [Position, 2024-06-14] "Cracking down on tax-exempt organizations that fund terrorism", opened and confirmed as his own post, dated June 14, 2024. He describes the June 8 Israeli operation freeing four hostages and sets out his intention to use the committee's authority. Per the research he pledged to strip tax-exempt status from non-profits and media entities suspected of supporting or funding Hamas.
- [Position, 2024-09] He asked the IRS to revoke the tax-exempt status of nine non-profit organisations (Jewish Insider, St. Louis Jewish Light). Not opened.
- [Position, 2024-03-21; first raised in January 2024] Committee statements pressing universities on tax-exempt status and foreign-sourced funding (January, March). Committee releases in his name as Chairman.
Safety and antisemitism (context)
- [Position, 2025-03-14] "Cracking down on antisemitism", opened and confirmed as his own post: he writes that he has been "alarmed by the rise in antisemitism we've seen ever since Hamas' October 7 terror attack against Israel," particularly at colleges. Read in full: it contains nothing about U.S. assistance to Israel.
- [After October 7, 2023-11-15] Convened a Ways and Means hearing on campus antisemitism and tax-exempt funding. Also a June 2024 hearing round-up and JPost coverage. Safety and campus-speech context under the content rule, never an answer about what America sends.
Note on the shape of this record
- Six of his nineteen sources found are unlabelled YouTube videos and most of the rest concern tax-exempt status and campus antisemitism. That is the bulk of his public activity in this area since early 2024, and it is context rather than an answer about assistance. The card says what the record is rather than converting committee activity into an aid position.
Also in this race
- –No Position Found Chris Reichard (Democrat)
- –No Position Found Rebecca Sharpe Lombard (Libertarian)
All Missouri candidates.
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