Laura Smitherman (@lsmitherman) header
Laura Smitherman (@lsmitherman) profile picture

Supervising Producer, Justice

CNN
Joined May 2009
Photo by Laura Smitherman (@lsmitherman)Photo by Laura Smitherman (@lsmitherman)Photo by Laura Smitherman (@lsmitherman)Photo by Laura Smitherman (@lsmitherman)Photo by Laura Smitherman (@lsmitherman)
Laura Smitherman retweeted
Breaking - Grand jury declines to indict Cassidy Hutchinson over Jan. 6 testimony
Hutchinson, a former White House aide, testified before lawmakers about President Donald Trump’s actions on Jan. 6, 2021. @washingtonpost washingtonpost.com/national-…
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
I was honored to present my @cnn colleague @kaitlancollins with the White House Correspondents Association “Excellence Under Deadline Pressure” award last night. I pointed out the judges were “awed” by the “depth of knowledge, access and context” that she brought to the news.
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
Roza's story offers a vivid window into Epstein’s controversial 2008 plea deal. It allowed Epstein to continue abusing young women even as he was serving time -- at times, while a sheriff’s officer was in the next room, survivors say. w/ @NickyGRobertson cnn.com/2026/07/20/politics/…
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
CNN’s @KFILE reveals the man leading the hantavirus response in the U.S. is a specialist in penile implants with little public health experience and hosted a podcast called “Erection Connection.”
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
A good look at how Saturday night unfolded for the intensely private First Lady, who had not previously experienced a shooting like that, from @betsy_klein Security had long been top of mind for Melania Trump, given the three prior assassination attempts on her husband's life. Trump acknowledged this weekend that the experience was a bit traumatic for her cnn.com/2026/04/27/politics/…
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
Acting Attorney General Blanche traveled to FL on Monday where he met w/new prosecutor handling investigation into former CIA director & Trump critic John Brennan. In his first few weeks on the job, Blanche has tried to show Trump he can deliver on what others could not: cnn.com/2026/04/21/politics/… @caseyagannon
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
FBI Director Kash Patel has filed a $250M defamation suit against The Atlantic over a story detailing allegations of excessive drinking and unexplained absences. The Atlantic called the suit "meritless." cnn.it/4cSQZEC
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
I asked President Trump why he's fighting with the Pope. Trump: "I have to do what's right. The Pope has to understand that. Very simple, I have nothing against the Pope. His brother is MAGA all the way..." So why are you fighting with him? Trump: "I'm not fighting with him. The Pope made a statement. He says Iran can have a nuclear weapon." He didn't say that.
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
We set out to tell the story of a Jeffrey Epstein survivor -- the abuse, including the before and after; their deep fear of law enforcement; what they found when they started looking through the Epstein files. Please watch (w/ @NickyGRobertson and team) cnn.com/us/video/epstein-sur…
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
CNN's Tom Foreman analyzed roughly two thousand videos of Jeffrey Epstein released by the Justice Department. Here's what they showed.
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
It appears as if Trump has deleted his post portraying himself as Jesus after facing some backlash from his own supporters.
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
Pam Bondi's sudden departure from DOJ will not deter lawmakers from seeking her testimony on the Epstein files. I joined @Boris_Sanchez and @brikeilarcnn with the latest.
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
Trump this a.m.
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
Today, in one of the most closely watched cases of the term, SCOTUS sent a challenge to Colorado’s ban on “conversion therapy” back to the lower courts for them to apply a new standard. This has created a lot of confusion, but I will explain here in 60 seconds:
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
Will we ever get to see more Epstein docs? CNN has learned some lawmakers are considering new legislation to force DOJ to release docs withheld. FULL STORY: cnn.com/2026/03/19/politics/… w/@AnnieGrayerCNN @kpolantz @Tierney_Megan
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
I asked the White House about Secretary Hegseth’s comment where he criticized reporting on US troop deaths, saying, “When a few drones get through or tragic things happen, it's front page news. I get it. the press only wants to make the president look bad, but try for once to report the reality.”
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
New: Lawyers representing victims of Jeffrey Epstein are asking judges to force the Justice Department to take down the Epstein files. The failure to properly redact victims’ information has triggered an “unfolding emergency," they say. cnn.com/2026/02/02/politics/…
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Laura Smitherman retweeted
New: Jeffrey Epstein survivors are waiting in the dark for the DOJ's release of the Epstein files. They spoke to me about what it's been like to process the disclosures, never knowing what's next. The photos have been especially hard, some of them say. cnn.com/2025/12/16/politics/…
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