Government Oversight & Ethics
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Ted Lieu of California are proposing an amendment this week that would prohibit funds from being used to send federal agents into American cities as part of Operation Legend or Operation Relentless Pursuit: Justice Department initiatives that have led brutal crackdowns on protesters in cities like Portland, Oregon.
House Judiciary Committee Democrats used their first-ever hearing with William Barr to berate the attorney general for what they charged was a breakdown in the independence of the justice system, accusing him of corrupting it to benefit President Donald Trump.
WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles County) and Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) sent a letter to Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General Michael Horowitz requesting an investigation into the DOJ's imprisonment of Michael Cohen after he expressed desire to exercise his First Amendment rights. In the letter, the Members emphasized that the DOJ must execute the law in an equal and impartial manner.
In the letter, the Members write:
Dear Inspector General Horowitz:
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles County) issued the following statement after two of his National Defense Authorization Amendments passed in the House. One creates reporting requirements on U.S. policy in Yemen, including requiring reporting on U.S. military support of the Saudi-led coalition. The other establishes an Office of Subnational Diplomacy at the State Department, which will enable the State Department to support city and state efforts to engage abroad.
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles County) and Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) announced that they will introduce a bill to restrict the ability of the U.S. Marshals Service to deputize other federal employees to perform the functions of a Deputy U.S. Marshal. The bill would also prohibit the Attorney General from designating Drug Enforcement Administration officers to enforce federal laws outside of their Title 21 authority. The bill allows for an exception when the federal support is requested by the state governor.
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles County), along with Reps. Rob Woodall, Judy Chu and Pete Olson, led a bipartisan letter of 150 Members of Congress calling on Attorney General William Barr to publicly condemn acts of anti-Asian bias stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Members also urged AG Barr to provide regular status updates regarding the steps the Department of Justice is taking and will take going forward to combat this behavior.
In the letter, the Members wrote:
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles County) issued the following statement after the Department of Defense announced that confederate flags were prohibited on military sites. In June, Veteran Reps.
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles County) and 26 Members of Congress urged the Small Business Administration to issue clear guidance that recipients of Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) loans can count expenses for COVID-19 safety compliance—specifically the CDC recommendations for businesses—as working capital expenditures.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has confirmed a report by The Associated Press that some of the service members who were mobilized to Washington, D.C., last month in response to civil unrest over the killing of George Floyd were issued bayonets. Defense documents obtained by the AP show some were not trained in riot response.
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-Los Angeles County) introduced a bill to enable Congress to independently enforce subpoenas and other Congressional actions by directly levying penalties against those refusing to comply.