Tag Archives: chaffetz

House Democrats Demand Investigation of Trump’s National Security Adviser

by stellamaclaurin Posted on February 14, 2017

Mother Jones

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On Monday night, all 17 Democrats on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform sent a letter to Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), the committee chairman, requesting that he either initiate a full investigation of Michael Flynn—President Donald Trump’s national security adviser who was caught misrepresenting conversations he had with the Russian ambassador—or “step aside and allow the Committee to vote on conducting basic oversight going forward.”

Flynn has been under fire since the Washington Post reported last week that he had discussed “US sanctions against Russia with that country’s ambassador to the United States during the month before President Trump took office,” despite claims to the contrary from Trump administration officials, including White House press secretary Sean Spicer and Vice President Mike Pence. Flynn, too, had previously denied discussing with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislya the sanctions levied by President Barack Obama in response to Moscow’s meddling in the 2016 election during a series of conversations in late December. But a spokesman for Flynn told the Post on Thursday that “he couldn’t be certain that sanctions never came up.”

On Monday, Kellyanne Conway, a senior White House adviser, said Flynn “does enjoy the full confidence of the president.” Less than an hour later, Spicer issued a statement saying that Trump was “evaluating the situation.” Monday night, the Post reported that then-Acting Attorney General Sally Yates told the White House in late January that she believed “Flynn had misled senior administration officials about the nature of his communications with the Russian ambassador.” The paper noted that she had “warned that Flynn was potentially vulnerable to Russian blackmail.”

The House Democrats’ letter to Chaffetz notes that Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the ranking Democrat on the committee, has repeatedly asked Chaffetz to investigate Flynn’s contacts with the Russian government and put forward the case for an investigation:

Grave questions have been raised about the fitness of General Flynn to serve as National Security Adviser and to continue having access to classified information. It has now been reported that General Flynn took payments of an undisclosed amount to travel to Moscow to dine with Vladimir Putin and celebrate RT, which US intelligence officials warn is the “Kremlin’s principal international propaganda outlet”; that he potentially failed to obtain the consent of Congress to receive those funds in violation of the Constitution; that he communicated repeatedly with Russian officials while that nation was engaged in an attack on our democracy and our presidential election; that he secretly discussed with the Russian ambassador, in possible violation of the Logan Act, sanctions imposed by President Obama in response to these Russian attacks; and that he may have lied about these discussions not only to the American people, but to his own White House colleagues, including the Vice President.

…

If you are not willing to initiate this investigation…then we ask that you not prevent us from calling up this matter at the next business meeting so we may request a vote on this and other proposals going forward on this matter.

Chaffetz, who was eager to investigate Hillary Clinton’s email controversy, has come under pressure from Democrats on the committee and his own constituents for going soft on Trump and not launching inquiries regarding Trump’s financial conflicts of interest. Cummings and other Democrats have previously asked Chaffetz for a committee investigation of contacts between Trump associates and Russia—and he has ignored these requests.

Read the full letter below:

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House Oversight Democrats Letter to Chaffetz Feb. 13 (PDF)

House Oversight Democrats Letter to Chaffetz Feb. 13 (Text)

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House Democrats Demand Investigation of Trump’s National Security Adviser

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Lock Her Up! Lock Her Up!

by Ahmed28780349212 Posted on October 28, 2016

Mother Jones

Oh FFS:

Let me guess: someone at the State Department wrote a note to Huma Abedin asking if someone at the Clinton Foundation could loan them a hammer so that Hillary Clinton’s latest broken BlackBerry could be smashed. And the kicker: It turned out to be a hammer from Benghazi!

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Lock Her Up! Lock Her Up!

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Watch These Dudes in Congress Tell Planned Parenthood How to Protect Women’s Health

by Eduardo7272 Posted on September 29, 2015

Mother Jones

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Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards appeared today before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, in the most recent congressional hearing examining the use of taxpayer funds by the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. This was Richards’ first appearance before Congress. She had not been invited to participate in either of the two hearings conducted by the House Judiciary Committee earlier in the month, in the wake of the heavily edited and controversial videos released by anti-abortion activist David Daleiden.

Planned Parenthood receives approximately $450 million annually in federal funds, nearly all of which are reimbursements for women’s health services from programs administered by the Department of Health and Human Services. According to Planned Parenthood, last year 41 percent ($528.4 million) of its revenue came from government health services grants and reimbursements.

“The question before us is: Does this organization—does Planned Parenthood—really need a federal subsidy?” said House Oversight chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah). “Every time we spend a federal dollar, what we’re doing is pulling money out of somebody’s pocket and we’re giving it to somebody else. What I don’t like, what I don’t want to tolerate, what I don’t want to become numb to is wasting those taxpayer dollars.”

Here are some of the recurring themes from the hearing that attempted to answer his question.

1. Her salary is too high: Chaffetz spent much of his allotted time interrogating Richards about her $590,000 annual salary, which he characterized as “exorbitant.” She corrected him, saying her annual salary is actually $520,000. (Female nonprofit CEOs still make markedly less than male CEOs. In 2013, for example, Laurance Hoagland Jr., chief investment officer of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, made $2.5 million, and John Seffrin, CEO of the American Cancer Society, made $2.1 million.) Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) responded angrily to this inquisition. “The entire time I’ve been in Congress, I’ve never seen a witness beaten up and questioned about their salary,” she said. “Ms. Richards heads a distinguished organization providing health care services to millions of Americans. I find it totally inappropriate and discriminatory.”

2. Her apology was self-incriminating: Several times, Richards was subjected to loud, often aggressive mansplaining about when it is and is not appropriate to issue an apology. Members were referring to a video that PPFA released days after the first sting video in which Richards said, “Our top priority is the compassionate care that we provide. In the sting video, one of our staff members speaks in a way that does not reflect that compassion. This is unacceptable, and I personally apologize for the staff member’s tone and statements.” Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) repeatedly asked Richards to justify this. “Why did you apologize?” he asked over and over again. “You can’t have it both ways. If nothing was done wrong, why did you apologize? You don’t apologize if she didn’t say anything that was wrong.”

Richards explained that her apology was more about the setting of the discussion. “I spoke with Dr. Nucatola, and it was inappropriate to have a clinical discussion in a nonconfidential, nonclinical setting,” Richards said. “It was that she used bad judgment to have a clinical discussion in a nonclinical setting.” The conversation in the sting video was over lunch and wine.

3. Planned Parenthood doesn’t provide mammograms: Republican critics of PPFA were also upset that Planned Parenthood clinics don’t provide mammogram services, despite the fact that radiology centers usually offer them because Medicaid reimbursements can’t come close to covering their operational costs. This point seemed to be lost on committee members who considered the lack of mammography as evidence that Planned Parenthood did not really provide women’s health services. Richards explained that when she goes to see her general practitioner and she gets a breast exam, she is referred to a radiologist to get a mammogram. Centers that depend on Medicaid reimbursement are often unable to pay for the equipment and radiologists’ salaries. New 3-D mammography technology is even more expensive. Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) saw this as evidence that Planned Parenthood fell short in providing acceptable women’s health services: “Do you acknowledge that community health centers offer a broader range of services, including mammograms?” To this, Richards replied, “I’m not an expert on what all community health centers provide.”

4. Taxpayer dollars are paying for abortions: The repeated expressions of outrage by Republicans over “taxpayer dollars” being used for abortion services was, according to committee member Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-Mich.), “exhausting.”

“I know my colleagues are more intelligent than this,” Lawrence said. “This is not a lump sum we give Planned Parenthood. It is a reimbursement.”

Under federal law, no taxpayer dollars are allocated to abortion services. PPFA has submitted its tax filings and reimbursement records, and so far there has been no evidence that it violated this law. That did not stop Rep. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) from expressing concern that “taxpayer dollars are being used to free up services that you provide that are aberrant services in the view of many taxpayers.”

5) Planned Parenthood provides too many abortions: Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) does not understand how the 327,000 abortions Planned Parenthood performed in 2014 amount to only 3 percent of Planned Parenthood’s services. Meadows claimed it was more like 12 percent. But as Richards explained, some patients visit more than once, and for multiple services, bringing the percentage down substantially.

And as my colleague Kevin Drum reported, Chaffetz used a chart from anti-abortion group Americans United for Life that incorrectly claimed that Planned Parenthood’s breast examinations have trended radically downward in recent years, while abortion services have substantially risen. In fact, cancer screenings have declined because, as Richards said, “some of the services, like pap smears, dropped in frequency because of changing medical standards about who should be screened and how often.” Abortion rates for Planned Parenthood have only increased about 2 percent per year since 2006.

6) Planned Parenthood is in cahoots with President Barack Obama: Toward the end of the nearly six-hour hearing, Jordan asked Richards about the internal workings of her staff. “Since the videos, has anyone from HHS, CMS contacted you?” Richards replied that because she has a big staff, she can’t answer that with 100 percent confidence. “Has the Attorney General of the United States Loretta Lynch contacted Planned Parenthood?” Jordan persisted. “Has anyone from the Justice Department contacted Planned Parenthood since the videos surfaced? There are potentially four federal crimes committed here, and all I’m asking is, has the Justice Department contacted you?” Richards repeated that she could not answer his questions with any certainty.

Jordan then escalated his attack. “Have you had any conversations with the president of the United States?” he asked. “Since the videos have surfaced, how many times have you been to the White House? How many times have you been to the White House since Mr. Obama’s been president?” Richards again said she couldn’t be sure, but Jordan was ready with an answer. “Our count shows that you, your board members, and senior staff have been to the White House 151 times in six and a half years.”

Investigations are also ongoing in the House Energy and Commerce Committee and in the House Judiciary Committee. So far, no wrongdoing has been found. Six state investigations that were triggered by the videos have also been closed after finding no evidence that Planned Parenthood violated law.

A subpoena has been issued to anti-abortion activist Daleiden for his investigative materials, and according to Chaffetz, they have been received but not yet opened or examined.

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Watch These Dudes in Congress Tell Planned Parenthood How to Protect Women’s Health

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Republican Congressman to DC Mayor: “You Can Go to Prison” for Legalizing Marijuana

by WilburnRichard Posted on February 25, 2015

Mother Jones

On Wednesday, a tense back-and-forth between congressional Republicans and the District of Columbia government over marijuana laws escalated into a dramatic showdown. In November, DC voters passed Initiative 71, which legalized marijuana—though with some major caveats—by an overwhelming margin. Mayor Muriel Bowser declared this week that the law would take effect at 12:01 a.m. Thursday. But Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), who chairs the House committee that oversees District governance, has taken a hard line, suggesting that Bowser and other city officials could be arrested for moving forward with the law because it goes against the will of Congress. Here’s the breakdown of what’s happening in our nation’s capital.

What Initiative 71 does: The bill, which was approved by two-thirds of DC voters, is relatively modest in its aims, compared to the more robust legalization laws of states like Colorado.* It makes the possession of two or fewer ounces of marijuana legal for people 21 and over, and it permits consumption on private property, as well as the cultivation of a limited number of marijuana plants. Marijuana sales remain strictly prohibited—although people can transfer as much as an ounce to each other as long as no money or goods changes hands—and smoking in public is forbidden, too.

How Congress fought it: Congress’ central role in overseeing DC law presented obstacles for the implementation of Initiative 71 from the beginning. Chaffetz, a conservative Republican who won a tight contest to become chairman of the House oversight committee, is a longtime foe of legalizing and decriminalizing marijuana. Once the new Congress convened, it had 30 days in which to approve or disapprove the law. Instead, Republicans chose to undermine it through the federal budget: They attached a rider, or amendment, on this year’s $1.1 trillion budget that shuts down the pot law. The rider bars DC from using any funds to “enact or carry out any law, rule, or regulation to legalize or otherwise reduce penalties associated with the possession, use, or distribution of any schedule I substance.”

How DC fought back: The city government has argued that since voters passed the law before Congress attached the rider, the prohibition is not valid, and the law should stand. Pro-pot Washingtonians have insisted the only legitimate way Congress can block legalization is through a Resolution of Disapproval, in which the entire body votes against the law after the review period. No such action was taken.

Chaffetz’s threat: Bowser has communicated her intent to implement the law, repeatedly citing what she calls DC’s solid legal standing as well as her obligation to carry out the will of the voters. On Tuesday, Chaffetz and Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) sent a letter to Bowser in which they urged her to reconsider. “If you decide to move forward tomorrow with the legalization of marijuana in the District, you will be doing so in knowing and willful violation of the law,” they wrote. Chaffetz was more blunt in an interview with the Washington Post: “You can go to prison for this,” he said. “We’re not playing a little game here.”

What next: At a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Bowser, surrounded by city officials, accused Chaffetz of “bullying the District of Columbia.” She reaffirmed her intention to enforce the law beginning at midnight. “We are on very strong legal ground,” she said. “Congress shouldn’t be so concerned about overturning what 7 out of 10 DC residents are in favor of.”

Will Bowser be getting booked as DC residents prepare to get baked, legally? The Washington Post reports that House Republicans could back down and hand off the issue to the Department of Justice, which is far less likely to act as aggressively as Congress. (President Barack Obama came out in favor of Initiative 71 last December.) The legal battle will likely be protracted, but DC pot advocates are already planning to celebrate: The city will welcome Cannabis Academy, a “cannabis education and entrepreneurship” convention, this weekend.

Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated the margin by which Initiative 71 passed.

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Republican Congressman to DC Mayor: “You Can Go to Prison” for Legalizing Marijuana

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Jason Chaffetz Opens Up Dumbest Investigation of Obama Yet

by QWEJamalrfzn Posted on February 9, 2015

Mother Jones

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I understand why net neutrality is a big deal for internet service providers, who oppose any new rules that restrict what they can do and how much they can charge. Ditto for content companies like Google, who support net neutrality because they don’t want to be extorted by ISPs for access to high-speed pipes. Ditto again for activists who believe internet access should be on a level playing field for everyone.

But it’s also become a bête noire of the tea party crowd, and it’s a lot less clear to me why these folks care. But maybe I’m overthinking it. Perhaps they oppose net neutrality simply because President Obama supports it. Here’s the latest evidence on this score:

Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, has written to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler asking for all documents related to communications and meetings involving White House and agency officials concerning the issue….Republicans have charged that Obama unduly influenced Wheeler’s proposal. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune (R-S.D.) said Wheeler “succumbed to the bully tactics of political activists and the president himself.”

….Chaffetz said in a letter dated Friday that he was investigating reports indicating “views expressed by the White House potentially had an improper influence” on development of Wheeler’s proposal. He cited a Wall Street Journal article last week that reported that two White House aides led a “secretive effort” to build support from outside groups for tough net-neutrality regulations.

Chaffetz must really be desperate. Does he seriously think that the president of the United States isn’t allowed to try to mobilize outside support for his policy proposals? Or even that the White House isn’t allowed to lobby FCC commissioners? That’s just crackers.

But Chaffetz is a certified up-and-comer in the Republican ranks, and I guess that means he has to make sure his tea party bona fides never get rusty from disuse. This time, though, he’s really digging through the bottom of the barrel. Unless he wants to join up with the crazytown contingent for good—something he’s managed to avoid so far—he should think twice about dumb theatrics like this. He’s better off when he keeps at least one foot planted in realityville.

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Jason Chaffetz Opens Up Dumbest Investigation of Obama Yet

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