Top Trump administration officials are dodging lawmakers’ requests to testify before congressional committees, and in some cases, “not even” adhering to “legally required” requests according to one Democratic senator, The Washington Post reported Saturday.
“Many of these folks are required to come before Congress on a regular basis as a matter of law – and they’re not even doing the legally required parts, much less the additional oversight that’s sometimes needed when there are big issues pending,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), speaking with the Post.
For instance, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee had only “two full committee hearings with administration witnesses this year,” the Post reported, a significant downgrade from the 24 hearings and briefings held in 2021 during the Biden administration. Similarly, the House Foreign Affairs Committee saw just 12 appearances from administration officials this year, down from the 47 in 2021, the first year of the Biden administration.
Examples include Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who’s been asked to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee about her agency’s aggressive immigration raids across the nation, but has refused to appear, and despite receiving two invitations.
“During her confirmation process, Secretary Noem committed to appearing before this committee when invited,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley (D-Iowa) during a committee hearing, the Post reported. “I expect better cooperation from the secretary early next year.”
As to why Noem was dodging the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) told the Post that she had “made some lame excuse,” but that he would happily “co-sign a bipartisan subpoena if that’s what it takes” to get her to appear.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has also defied requests to appear before a Senate committee – the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee – and despite a previous pledge to Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) that he would testify before the committee once a quarter if asked.
“Failure to conduct an oversight hearing on Secretary Kennedy’s actions would be an abdication of our responsibility – both from a moral perspective and as a matter of sound public health policy,” wrote Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and 10 other Democrats in a letter to Cassidy.