Holding Them Accountable

TRANSCRIPT

In the 2022 election cycle, Republicans promised if they were given control of the U.S. House, they would hold Democrat politicians and embedded bureaucrats accountable for putting America in the ditch.

Here to tell us more is Church Militant's reporter Kristine Christlieb, who has been watching House Republicans striving to keep their promise.

After two years of the Biden regime, Americans are miserable from the nation's three-year case of COVID.

In tonight's In-Depth Report, we'll see how one House subcommittee is holding public health officials' feet to the fire.

Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va.: "Let me be clear. It is not acceptable to stonewall any member of Congress with oversight authority."

United States Congressman Morgan Griffith opened Wednesday's hearing on the COVID response with a warning to Centers for Disease Control (CDC) officials to be forthcoming in their responses.

But it did little good.

In one 60-second interval, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky dodged Tennessee House member Diana Harshbarger's questions with "pending litigation" excuses. 

Rochelle Walensky, director, CDC: "There's pending litigation on that, so I'm not going to get into the specifics on that today. Thank you."

Rep. Diana Harshbarger, R-Tenn.: "What about Facebook and Instagram?"

Walensky: "Similar."

Walensky: "Again, there's pending litigation on that, so I'm not free to comment right now."

Walensky: "Pending litigation — regrets."

While those kinds of responses were frustrating, members of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health did get in their licks.

Iowa Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who is both a physician and former state public health official, made a withering statement pointing out an array of problems.

Rep. Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa: "It's demoralizing and depressing that agencies that were held in such esteem cannot translate and transfer research and evidence and respond to real-world evidence when they come up with strategies and policies. It's not just a messaging problem; it was a problem of bias within the agencies."

After getting little help from National Institutes of Health Acting Director Lawrence Tabak in sorting out how opposing views were suppressed, Florida Republican Rep. Kat Cammack had this advice:

Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla.: "You have a responsibility to appear before this committee just as we have a constitutional responsibility for oversight. That is our duty to the American people. If I were you, I would clear your schedule. This will come to light."

It was echoed by Texas Republican Rep. Dan Crenshaw.

Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas: "We're going to have a lot more hearings like this."

This was round one in what will likely be a long bout. It's going to take discipline on the part of Republicans to force these bureaucrats back for additional hearings and to provide the requested documents. It's going to take patience and discipline.