EXCLUSIVE — The new
weaponization of government
panel is “absolutely” prepared to issue subpoenas to expose “corruption” in federal agencies as it launches a range of investigations, including into the
Department of Justice
‘s efforts to criminalize protesters at school board meetings, according to the House GOP conference chairwoman.
Rep.
Elise Stefanik
(R-NY), a newly appointed member to the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, said Republicans will demand transparency from the Biden administration and will use the power of the majority to compel documents and testimony.
“Absolutely,” Stefanik told the Washington Examiner when asked about speedy subpoenas. “I anticipate there will be subpoenas, not just from this select subcommittee but from many of the agencies that have refused to comply with document requests.”
Stefanik continued, “We will fight for transparency and accountability and shining sunlight on the corruption in these federal agencies, and it is telling that already the Democrats and the Biden administration and Joe Biden himself are trying to stonewall our efforts to access information. These agencies work for the American people, not the other way around.”
BIDEN DODGING QUESTION ON SPEAKING TO SPECIAL COUNSEL CONTINUES WHITE HOUSE’S EVASIVE
In a sign of what’s to come, the GOP members of the weaponization panel held their first closed-door meeting Friday, and Judiciary Committee Chairman
Jim Jordan
(R-OH) fired off a series of letters demanding information and testimony on hot-button topics that could shift to the new select committee, which he also chairs.
The
five letters
targeted investigations on the politicization of the Department of Justice and FBI;
Nina Jankowicz
, former head of the Department of Homeland Security’s Disinformation Governance Board; and Biden administration efforts to target parent protesters at school boards.
Stefanik said any
labeling of parents as
domestic terrorists
is the definition of weaponization and deserves the select committee’s full attention.
“You’re talking about the federal government targeting parents who are asking valid questions about their kids’ education, including violent acts committed against their kids in schools,” said Stefanik, who
previously grilled
the FBI about this issue. “It is government weaponization at its worst, and that’s why we’re focused on getting to the truth.”
The targeting of parents has been a rallying cry for conservatives, especially as Attorney General
Merrick Garland
has not rescinded his
Oct. 4, 2021, memo
deploying the FBI to investigate threats against school boards. Garland continued to
defend the memo
despite the National School Boards Association withdrawing its letter asking the DOJ to investigate threats against school board members that likened parent protesters to domestic terrorists.
Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco also backed the memo
under questioning
in 2021, saying, “That is the appropriate role of the Department of Justice to make sure that we are addressing criminal conduct and violence.”
Republicans want to further expose ties between the DOJ and the White House on the NSBA letter and hold them accountable.
“Sunshine is the first step,” Stefanik said. “Obviously, legislative reforms in our role in Congress will follow and also accountability for officials who committed those illegal acts.”
House Speaker
Kevin McCarthy
(R-CA)
named the 12 members
of the weaponization committee last week, including watchdog veterans like Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), the former chairman of the House Oversight Committee, and newer members like Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL) and Rep. Harriet Hageman (R), who ousted
Liz Cheney
in the Wyoming congressional race.
Democrats will have nine slots on the committee, but members have not yet been announced.
Nicki Neily, the president of the parent activist group Parents Defending Education, told the Washington Examiner that the group was “happy to hear” that the committee would be looking into the NSBA letter and the Garland memo.
“There have been no apologies to the American people, and there have been documented incidents of the FBI contacting parents — which has, unsurprisingly, chilled political participation at the local government level,” Neily said. “Let’s not forget that the initial letter sent to President Biden by the National School Board Association was written in partnership with a White House staffer who still serves in this administration — and that the NSBA’s
postmortem
confirmed what PDE initially discovered through public records requests in October 2021. Many questions remain unanswered, and culpable parties still to this day have not been held accountable.”
Neily was referring to Mary Wall, a senior policy adviser for the White House, who
coordinated
with then-NSBA head Chip Slaven in September 2021 on the association’s infamous letter. Jordan
sent a letter to Slaven
on Friday demanding testimony on the Biden administration’s attempts “to use the heavy hand of federal law enforcement to target concerned parents at local school board meetings and chill their protected First Amendment activity.”
The select committee is one of the marquee changes of the new GOP majority, as Republicans pledged to launch an era of oversight on the Biden administration that has avoided tough questioning for two years with Democrats previously in total control of Congress. Republicans in
other committees
have already launched investigations into President Joe Biden’s classified documents, son Hunter Biden’s artwork, and foreign donations tied to the Penn Biden Center.
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As to whether Republicans run the risk of too many committees fighting for attention, Stefanik acknowledged the challenges of pent up demand for oversight.
“This is not the first time that there are jurisdictional challenges,” Stefanik said, “and we’re committed to working together.”
The Department of Justice did not provide comment.
