-9999

Floor Speech

This point was, of course, made clear in Mr. Huitema's HSGAC hearing, as he testified to the committee that nominee vetting would be not just a priority but priority one for the Office of Government Ethics and would dominate the next year, meaning the year that is about to arrive.

Given the fact that this position serves, once confirmed, for a 5- year term, it is also important for us to remember that we are now just a few weeks away from a Presidential election, a Presidential election that will determine who will serve as President of the United States for the next 4 years. So in light of that, we should wait to see who is elected before confirming this person to a 5-year term.

It is concerning to me that during his hearing before the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Mr. Huitema left open the possibility of supporting a partisan policy, a partisan approach, from a nonpartisan position, one that can be used as a means of further weaponizing our government against officials who might be appointed, should President Trump win, in a Republican administration. Individuals responsible with directing the Office of Government Ethics must not engage, promote, or tolerate partisan lawfare.

Particularly in the midst of unprecedented lawfare and political weaponization of the U.S. Government against Donald Trump by the Biden- Harris administration, I have got grave concerns that have led me to oppose their partisan nominees and policies considered in this Chamber, particularly between now and the election. The Biden-Harris administration forfeited that courtesy when they decided that they wanted to govern more like a banana republic than the United States of America.

Now, after these two assassination attempts that we have seen so far on Donald Trump, continued lawfare by Democrats at both State and national levels and unacceptable rhetoric from Vice President Harris, who has brought foreign leaders to campaign for her in a key battleground State, it is clear that they have changed their tune. And so I am not going to change my tune.

We have to remember that the President of the United States, at any given moment, for constitutional purposes, is the executive branch, is the living embodiment of the executive branch. This is an office that really ought to be filled at least with Members being allowed to take into account the outcome of a coming Presidential election. With that Presidential election just weeks away, there is no reason this has to be done today. In fact, there are very, very good reasons for us not to do it today.

Let's take this up after the Presidential election. That is the appropriate time to raise this. If Mr. Huitema is willing to further clarify his position and the next sitting President appoints him to fill the position, I am happy to revisit this question. Until then, I object.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source