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About
Grant F. Smith is an American investigative researcher, author, and advocate specializing in U.S. foreign policy, with a focus on the influence of the Israel lobby, foreign agents, and compliance with the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) in American politics. He holds a bachelor's degree in International Relations from the University of Minnesota and a master's degree in International Management from the University of St. Thomas. Smith serves as the director, treasurer, and Research Director of the Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy (IRmep), a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit think tank he co-founded in 2002 that serves as a platform for research and public education on Middle East policy influences. Through IRmep, he utilizes Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests and litigation to uncover and publicize declassified U.S. government documents related to Israeli nuclear programs, espionage activities, lobbying efforts, and broader Middle East policy. His legal and policy advocacy includes filing lawsuits against the Department of the Treasury, IRS, CIA, and Department of Justice, challenging the tax-exempt status of pro-Israel organizations, seeking transparency regarding the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), compelling AIPAC's reregistration as a foreign agent, and contesting U.S. foreign aid to Israel over its clandestine nuclear arsenal, such as a 2015 pro se lawsuit against the CIA and a 2016 federal lawsuit. In 2009, he released reports on Israeli espionage in the U.S. based on declassified FBI files, which prompted media coverage and debates on intelligence sharing. He has authored several books on these topics, including 'Neocon Middle East Policy: The Clean Break Plan Destroying the Old Order?' (2005), 'Deadly Dogma: How Neoconservatives Broke the Law to Deceive America' (2006), 'Foreign Agents: Election Intervention by Proxy' (2007), 'America's Defense Line: The Justice Department's Battle to Register the Israel Lobby as Agents of a Foreign Principal' (2008), 'Spy Trade: How Israel's Lobby Undermines America's Economy' (2008), 'Divert!: NUMEC, Zalman Shapiro and the Diversion of US Weapons Grade Uranium Into the Israeli Nuclear Weapons Program' (2012), 'Foreign Agents: The American Israel Public Affairs Committee from the 1963 Fulbright Hearings to the 2005 Espionage Scandal', and 'Big Israel: How Israel's Lobby Moves America' (2016). He has contributed to media outlets critiquing U.S.-Israel relations, made multiple appearances including 10 programs on C-SPAN since 2004, and spoken at conferences hosted by organizations like the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. His work has been featured in outlets such as The Washington Post, Al Jazeera, and Pacifica Radio, and he maintains the Israel Lobby Archive, a digital repository of lobbying documents, along with active IRmep platforms including podcasts, reports, and social media. Smith's activism emphasizes transparency and reform of foreign agent registration laws, focusing on policy accountability rather than ethnicity or religion, and he has been criticized by pro-Israel groups like the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for his claims and research methods, which he defends as necessary oversight, including detailing the ADL's past FBI espionage investigations. He continues to engage in public speaking and media appearances to promote reforms in foreign agent disclosure laws and has documented connections between U.S. policymakers and foreign lobbies, including in his work on the 2005 espionage case involving former AIPAC officials. His efforts have influenced discussions on U.S. aid to Israel and the enforcement of FARA, positioning him as a key figure in research regarding influence peddling.