Podcast host Stephen A. Smith said Friday that several high-profile Democratic officials have declined or ignored repeated invitations to appear on his show, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, as reported [1] by Fox News.
Smith addressed the issue while responding to criticism he said he has received from close friends over his recent commentary about Democratic lawmakers, including Texas Rep. Jasmine Crockett.
Smith said he stood by his earlier remarks and noted that Crockett and other Democrats had been invited to join him on the program for months without accepting. “Jasmine Crockett has been on this air — invited on this show for four months,” Smith said.
“AOC has been invited on this show for four months. Gavin Newsom has been invited on this show longer than that. Props to Hakeem Jeffries. He’s a friend of the show, always welcome on here. I like that man. I respect him. Chuck Schumer has been invited on this show. Hasn’t shown up. Where they at?”
Smith went on to contrast the response from Republicans, saying, “Every single Republican I have asked to show up on this show has either said yes, or that they’re coming. Not the Dems. Why?”
Fox News Digital contacted the offices of Crockett, Ocasio-Cortez, Newsom, Jeffries and Schumer for comment but did not receive immediate responses.
Jeffries is the only Democrat Smith mentioned who has appeared on the show recently, joining him for an interview in October.
Smith noted that he has spoken with a number of other Democrats in past weeks, including Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Pennsylvania Rep. Madeleine Dean, Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani.
On the Republican side, Smith interviewed Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan and House Speaker Mike Johnson earlier this month. He also spoke with Texas Rep. Chip Roy in October.
Smith has faced criticism from some in the media after remarks he made last month about Crockett, in which he suggested she was more focused on what he described as performative political actions than on constituent issues.
He later posted a video apologizing to Crockett.
The podcast host said he intends to continue extending invitations to political figures from both parties but noted that audience members have questioned the absence of certain Democratic officials he has repeatedly named.