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Tag:

Transparency

From the Desk of Bob Barr

GOP Squandered Its Best Opportunity To Hold Hillary Accountable

by Liberty Guard Author April 15, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author

In her Sunday video announcing her presidential candidacy, Hillary Clinton touched as many hot buttons as could be crammed into a two-minute spot – women, working families, single moms, gays, Hispanics, retirees, even dog owners made the cut. Not surprisingly, what failed to make the cut was the most serious scandal (among many) which will dog Hillary throughout the primary and general campaign season – the fact that she violated numerous federal laws and regulations regarding official e-mails during and after her tenure as Secretary of State, and has thumbed her nose at the Congress seeking answers.

It made perfect sense, of course, for the presumptive Democratic nominee to stay as far from this scandal as possible.

For one thing, Clinton undoubtedly appreciates the fact that congressional Republicans rarely exhibit any instinct or stomach for pressing an attack against a Democrat adversary, regardless of how strong the merits. Already, for example, the Republican leadership in the House has let slip by what probably was its strongest and most potent weapon with which to attack Hillary.

That golden opportunity was not the Select Committee on Benghazi, chaired by South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy. To be sure, the Benghazi Committee’s investigation is an important one, and may yet uncover important evidence that Hillary and other Obama Administration officials were derelict in their duties before, during and after the fatal 2012 attack on the American consulate in that Libyan city. But already the Select Committee is bogged down in negotiations with Clinton’s attorneys, who are gleefully parsing every word in a committee “request” to the former Secretary of State to kindly turn over her e-mail server to a “neutral” entity for review.

Based on my background as a United States Attorney, and especially as an impeachment manager in the trial of former President Bill Clinton, once you start down that path of playing “Mother May I” with an adversary as adept at delaying and obfuscating as are both Clintons, you have pretty well lost whatever advantage you might have had.

Moreover, while the Benghazi Select Committee is clothed with essentially the same powers as a standing committee of the House, including the power to subpoena witnesses and materials relevant to its jurisdiction, the fact is, its jurisdiction is limited. While the Resolution establishing the Select Committee does sweep broadly, at some point every witness it might call and every document it might subpoena, will be subject to wrangling over whether or not it falls within the scope of the “Benghazi” incident. This inherent limitation will prove a source of continuing irritation, controversy and delay for the work of the Select Committee, no matter how aggressive a Chairman Gowdy turns out to be; and he is a good one.

Which brings us to the golden opportunity the GOP had to obtain answers and hold Hillary accountable to the law and to the American People, but for some reason rejected — the Government Reform and Oversight Committee, chaired by Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz.

The House Oversight Committee has the broadest jurisdiction of any committee of the Congress – including the power to inquire into the operation of every department, office and agency of the federal government; to ensure they and those persons administering them (or who did administer them) are doing so consistent with the letter and the intent of legislation passed by the Congress. It is a permanent committee, and its chairman has the power – not enjoyed by any other committee chairman – to issue subpoenas without vote of the committee.

Of course, Chaffetz, like every committee chairman, ultimately is limited in what he can do as a committee chairman by the leadership of the majority party to which he belongs. And therein lies the rub.

Chaffetz announced earlier this year that his committee would investigate the Hillary Clinton e-mail scandal insofar as it clearly deals with possible violations of federal laws and regulations governing the integrity of communications and records keeping by government officials and departments. The jurisdiction of the committee clearly covers both the subject matter and the individuals involved in all aspects of the Clinton e-mail scandal; and there would be no argument over whether any particular witness or document subpoenaed did or did not relate to the Benghazi incident.

The Oversight Committee could even, should it desire, take a witness – even a former cabinet official – into custody for refusing to appear or produce subpoenaed materials (broadly construed by courts today to include computers). This reflects the power vested in a congressional committee — as a part of a branch of our government co-equal with the executive branch – and upheld by the United States Supreme Court in a 1927 decision that has not been overturned since. That would be an extreme measure, but it reflects the trump cards held by the GOP as the majority party in both houses of Congress; power that means something only if understood and wielded.

In failing to lay the groundwork for definitive action through an investigation conducted by the Government Oversight Committee, the GOP has significantly, if not fatally limited its ability to hold Hillary Clinton accountable for violating the laws and lawful regulations applicable to her and every other high government official.

April 15, 2015 0 comment
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Liberty Updates

Liberty Update – Audit the Federal Reserve

by Liberty Guard Author February 12, 2015
written by Liberty Guard Author
February 12, 2015 0 comment
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From the Desk of Bob Barr

Federal Court Ruling Cracks IRS Stonewall

by Liberty Guard Author July 23, 2014
written by Liberty Guard Author

Judge Susan Dlott may not be a household name among conservatives; but the federal judge’s decision last week allowing a lawsuit against the IRS to move forward might make her one. By rejecting the demand from federal government attorneys that the case be dismissed, thereby allowing some of the charges to continue to trial, Dlott has struck a meaningful blow in support of those of us in America still committed to the pursuit of the truth and the rule of law. Her ruling is by no means a slam-dunk for the Tea Party groups involved in the lawsuit; but it is a vital step in holding politically-motivated IRS officials accountable for violating the constitutional rights of conservatives.

Being able to have a day in court seemed an unlikely prospect at the outset of this scandal. One need only consider the IRS’ systematic stonewalling of Congress to understand just how strong is the out-of-control agency’s commitment to protecting itself against being held accountable for misdeeds. If the agency’s top brass was so brazen as to defy seasoned and relentless investigators like House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, then attempting to torpedo a mere lawsuit in federal District Court must have seemed like child’s play for the Establishment. Fortunately for justice — and the Constitution — Judge Dlott is not buying into the IRS’ arguments that it is immune from having to defend its actions in a court of law.

The judge did caution that much of what the Tea Party has alleged will be difficult to prove; after all, evidence at the IRS seems mysteriously to disappear daily.

In fact, Thomas Kane, the IRS Deputy Associate Chief Counsel, who oversees document production for congressional investigations, testified last Thursday to a congressional panel about “computer problems” affecting other members of the IRS, including some directly involved in the investigation, which might prevent the IRS from fully complying with Issa’s subpoenas. His testimony contained other bombshells. IRS officials originally claimed that “problems” destroyed disgraced former Service official Lois Lerner’s email communications, erasing likely incriminating evidence linking her (and probably other Obama Administration officials) to criminal conduct. Kane’s testimony now indicates this too may have been more obstruction from top IRS officials. “I don’t know if there is a backup tape with information on it or there isn’t,” Kane told investigators; concluding in a classic understatement, “I know that there’s an issue out there about it.”

“Finding out that IRS Commissioner [John] Koskinen jumped the gun in reporting to Congress that the IRS ‘confirmed’ all back-up tapes had been destroyed makes me even more suspicious of why he waited months to inform Congress about lost Lois Lerner e-mails,” Issa said in a statement following Kane’s testimony. The apparent flip-flop on such a crucial component of the investigation raises the prospect that the IRS was floating the lie about the tapes in order to see if it could escape prosecution; and when it became clear Issa had no intention of relenting in his pursuit, they are now backtracking to avoid additional charges. For instance, aU.S. Archivist recently told a congressional committee the IRS “did not follow the law” by failing to report the loss of Lerner’s emails.

The only thing we know for sure is the IRS is doing everything it can to bury the evidence and the truth. This presents an interesting moral quandary for Democrats, who for years watched in silence as the Obama Administration ran roughshod over every conceivable safeguard against government corruption. “If the government is right in [the Tea Party] case, it means that from now on, no matter who the president is, the IRS can pick out a group of people that disagrees with the president and pull those people out, delay them, harass them, target them, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it,” says Edward Greim, the attorney representing the Tea Party groups suing the IRS.

The refusal to so much as even impliedly question Obama’s lawlessness reflects how Democrats have painted themselves into a corner. By remaining silent in the face of repeated Administration scandals over the last six years, Democrats became complicit in likely criminal behavior of the Administration. Furthermore, as Greim highlighted, their silence sets a dangerous precedent of a virtually unchecked Executive Branch; one that eventually will fall back into the hands Republicans sooner than Democrats care to admit — ironically because of this refusal to speak out against misconduct.

The manner in which Democrats in the House and the Senate have served to defend and enable the Administration’s brazen lawlessness should – hopefully will – hurt them at the polls this fall. In the meantime, Judge Dlott’s interim ruling permitting the Tea Party lawsuit against IRS abuses to move forward, is an important reminder the rule of law still burns in America, if dimly and sporadically.

 

July 23, 2014 0 comment
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