Democrats clash with Trump cabinet members refusing to testify



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Democrats in the House – from his ranks to his leaders – have intensified their rhetorical attacks on Donald Trump's presidency, calling it "lawless" or comparing it to an autocracy. Some new presidents of powerful committees have threatened to force Trump administration officials to go to Capitol Hill with subpoenas, while others hope to testify of their own free will. And already some Democrats say the executive is largely opposed to congressional oversight, citing two officials this week: Health and Social Services Secretary Alex Azar and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin who have declined the invitation of Democrats.

"It seems" President of the Ways and Means of the House, Richard Neal, a Massachusetts Democrat who has so far tried to ensure that Mnuchin does not appear before his panel, told CNN .

Their takeover of the House gave the Democrats new powers to investigate the Trump administration and publicly question its officials on their policies and actions, including the separation of families of undocumented migrants at the border. Southern United States and the recall to work of thousands of employees of the Internal Revenue Service during the partial closure of the government. But in just a few weeks, Democrats have become frustrated with the efforts of Cabinet officials to delay or block their demands.

Thursday, House Majority Leader, Steny Hoyer, a Democrat from Maryland, criticized Azar and Mnuchin's decisions in the White House. not to testify.

"That's what I expect from people who see themselves as authoritarian leaders of our government – and it starts with the president of the United States," Hoyer told CNN.

Some senior officials of the Trump administration are already well advanced. After weeks of negotiations, Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker agreed to appear before the House Judiciary Committee on February 8. The Speaker of the House, Jerry Nadler, a New York Democrat, recently sent a letter to Whitaker detailing some of the issues he intends to ask him.
  HHS secretary refuses request to testify on separations of families at borders, panel says

"Traditionally, a treasury secretary launches the Ways and Means Committee," said Neal. "We want this to remain paramount."

  House Committee Cancels Closing Hearing After Mnuchin Refuses to Appear

In Neal Letter Published Later in During the day, Mnuchin replied that he would appear before the House Ways and Means Committee after the publication of the President's budget. Texas Representative Brad Brady, a Republican on the Ways and Means Committee, said Mnuchin "can fend for himself, and he has a very positive story to tell."

Also this week, Energy and Commerce President Frank Pallone personally asked Azar to testify before the committee, but the secretary's office rejected his request.

"In one way or another," Azar will have to testify before the committee, the New Jersey Democrat said in a statement.

He characterized as "unacceptable" Azar's refusal to respond to the request for testimony and said that it was "scandalous" that the secretary had not yet appeared before Congress for a hearing on the separation of children from their parents on the southern border. Between April 19 and May 31, 2018, more than 2,600 children were separated from their parents, after the Trump administration ordered federal prosecutors to institute criminal proceedings against all migrants who broke through. illegally the border. The policy was finally reversed by a decree.
  What was not done by the Department of Homeland Security during the closure
When they were at the Head of the Obama administration, Republicans in the House have conducted numerous investigations, including a highly publicized and bitter one to the 2012 attacks on a US mission in Libya that had brought Hillary Clinton, then Secretary of State American, on the hill. . On Thursday, they said their fellow Democrats should work to open the government.

"Why do not all committees focus on solving the closures problem?" Then we can talk about what they want to do, "said the minority leader in the House. Kevin McCarthy, a California Republican, said Thursday.

"Ultimately, Democrats must decide if they want to work to reopen the government to secure our border, create jobs, or harass the president," said Representative Steve Scalise. from Louisiana, the whip GOP, told CNN. "I'm afraid the latter is their approach and I think it would be a mistake on their part."

Democrats said that the tactics of Trump administration officials would ultimately be ineffective.

"Since they will have to speak for the most corrupt, chaotic and chaotic administration of our lives, you can hardly blame them for hiding under their sofas," Jamie told CNN Raskin, Democrat of Maryland on the Judiciary and Oversight Committees of the House. "But in American democracy, the government is held accountable through government officials, so they will have to testify."

CNN's Lauren Fox, Donna Borak, Caroline Kelly, and Kate Sullivan contributed to this report. [19659029] [ad_2]
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