Upset that no invitation was initially sent…
Many critics of government officials have often compared holding a politician to a promise made essentially the same as attempting to nail Jell-o to a tree. Despite complaints that many in the world of politics purposefully become vague and elusive when held to task for past vows, Rep. Darrell Issa is holding Secretary of State John Kerry to his word to work with Congress regarding the Benghazi hearings, and Team Kerry is less than pleased, as reported by The Washington Examiner.
Kerry may have painted himself into a corner when he pledged under oath that he would cooperate fully with Congress is moving forward with the investigations. Shortly after being sworn in as Hillary Clinton’s replacement at the State Department, Kerry promised the House Foreign Affairs Committee that he would “have a review of anything you don’t think you’ve gotten that you’re supposed to get.” Kerry also said under penalty of perjury “I will appoint somebody to work directly with you, starting tomorrow.”
Miss Manners goes to Washington…
Possibly a portent of things to come, State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf was noticeably less than thrilled when commenting on her boss’s being at the receiving end of a subpoena to testify before Issa’s House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Raising more than a few eyebrows inside the DC Beltway, Harf lashed out at Issa for issuing a legal demand first instead of sending an invitation.
At least she didn’t call him “dude”…
Harf called out Issa for his social faux pas by pointedly stating:
[I]t’s highly unusual for a subpoena to be issued before there’s even an official invitation for testimony. I think everyone can make their own judgments about that.
I’m not sure the secretary’s even aware of the request, again, given his travel. He’s scheduled to be in Mexico on the 21st, which is the date that [the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee] has asked him to testify, which HOGR would have known if they reached out to us instead of issuing a subpoena – I think by tweet, possibly.
Presumably taking a swipe as Rep. Issa for sending his reasons for subpoenaing Kerry via Twitter, Harf didn’t hold back with the snark when she fired away with, “I guess that’s how they’re doing it now.”
So help me, God…
When testifying last year before Congress, Kerry specifically vowed to Rep. Edward Royce:
[N]ow that I am the Secretary and I am responsible to you and the Congress, I can promise you that if you’re not getting something that you have evidence of or you think you ought to be getting, we’ll work with you. And I will appoint somebody to work directly with you starting tomorrow, with you, Mr. Chairman, to have a review of anything you don’t think you’ve gotten that you’re supposed to get.
Besides sending the subpoena to Kerry, Rep. Issa also sent an official and very public letter to the current Secretary of State on May 2, 2014, emphasizing to Kerry that he’s attached himself to Barack Obama’s Nov. 14, 2012 pledge to fully cooperate:
I think it is important for us to find out exactly what happened in Benghazi, and I’m happy to cooperate in any ways that Congress wants. We have provided every bit of information that we have, and we will continue to provide information. And we’ve got a full-blown investigation, and all that information will be disgorged to Congress. [Emphasis in the original]
