Co-chairmen of independent Benghazi review blow the whistle on Darrell Issa

[kpete]

FULL LETTER HERE: http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2013/images/05/16/pickeringletter.pdf


"The public deserves to hear your questions and our answers," wrote former Ambassador Thomas Pickering and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen, co-chairmen of the Accountability Review Board that was convened to investigate the September 11th attack.

The dispute between Issa and the co-chairmen came to a head after neither Pickering nor Mullen attended a May 8 House Oversight Committee hearing on the attacks, sparking a heated back and forth about who was invited and when. The rhetoric intensified Sunday during a highly contentious joint appearance with Issa and Pickering on NBC's "Meet the Press" in which Issa maintained the two "refused to come before our committee." Pickering insisted that he was not invited despite expressing a willingness to testify.


...................

Issa also suggested on the program that Pickering and Mullen meet with the committee behind closed doors so as not to create "some sort of stage show." But the two assert in their letter that a public hearing is a "more appropriate forum" and accuse Issa of changing his "position on the terms of our appearance."

"Having taken liberal license to call into question the Board's work, it is surprising that you now maintain that members of the committee need a closed-door proceeding before being able to ask "informed questions" at a public hearing," they write in the letter.

.....................................

http://thelead.blogs.cnn.com/2013/05/16/first-on-cnn-pickering-mullen-challenge-issa-to-let-them-testify-in-public/
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/05/16/1209494/-Co-chairmen-of-independent-Benghazi-review-blow-the-whistle-on-Darrell-Issa

[EV_Ares]

1. As the Church Lady so often said; Isn't that special! Issa is such a fake, if i remember correctly

It seems he had some background that certainly was not stellar nor clean. He is dishonest as he has shown & has no interest in what is true or what could we do to prevent anything like Behgahazi ever happening again. He is nothing but a dishonest political hack.

Can't remember what that was in CA that he was involved with but it was a scandal itself.

[beac]

3. Car theft. And more than once:

http://crooksandliars.com/susie-madrak/rep-darell-issa-american-role-model-c

Oh, and weapons charges and arson:
http://mediamatters.org/research/2011/01/11/report-media-ignore-rep-issas-alleged-criminal/174997


Issa is as useless and annoying as the car alarms he sells. http://everythingpossiblehappens.blogspot.com/2013/04/schadefreude-darrell-issas-car-alarm.html

[EV_Ares]

4. Really, knew there was something, & after all that elected to congress as a republican & now

on the committee he is conducting investigations. Crazy.

Hey, thanks for taking the time to do that as well.

[beac]

5. It was a good vent for my sadly impotent rage against Issa.

Makes me SICK that he is in Congress instead of prison.

[TinkerTot55]

18. For Republican voters....

Issa's background is a feature, not a bug.

[homegirl]

28. Issa

The last time Issa ran for his Congressional seat he had over $1.2 million in his campaign fund. The Democrat who ran against him had less than $7K!, but got 39% of the votes. The Democratic party is making a huge mistake by failing to support an opposition candidate and by not targeting that district to be changed from red to blue.

[beac]

33. I couldn't agree more. More fuel for my rage!

[heaven05]

24. just

shows what 2second attention span americans will vote into some of our highest representative offices. I'm really embarrassed at the seemingly extreme lack of intelligence in people that will vote for someone like Issa. This political system is rotten to the core. And no I don't have any idea on what to replace it with. Yet the system is rotten and too susceptible to rampant corruption, cronyism, racism and stupidity.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

32. Why is a felon an elected official?

[randome]

2. Darrell Issa.

[hr]
[font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font]
[hr]

[Ikonoklast]

12. Not even close...

Darrell Issa:

[randome]

14. Better!

[hr]
[font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font]
[hr]

[Ikonoklast]

15. I'm kinda ashamed of it, though, weasels aren't stupid, shallow, or car thiefs.

They are kinda cute.

[randome]

19. Actually...'weasels'? I don't see any weasel in your post, only a blankness, which I took...

...to be your point.

[hr]
[font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font]
[hr]

[ms liberty]

25. Hey. You're insulting German Shepherds there. n/t

[Iwillnevergiveup]

6. That this guy

keeps getting re-elected to the House is a scandal in itself. Bought and paid for, Issa epitomizes what's wrong with our democratic process.

[aggiesal]

11. His district is heavily Republican . . .

You could run Charles Manson in that district
and if his name had an (R) next to it he would get elected.

[BlueCaliDem]

17. Time to redistrict his district.

The guy has GOT to go and it's clear Republicans don't know how to vote for good politicians - or at least, politicians that don't have a criminal record and history of "set ups".

[kpete]

22. sad

but true,

peace, kp

[nadinbrzezinski]

13. Take a good deep look at his district

If the Republicans ran an empty jar with an R behind the name, chances are it would be elected. (Oh wait, they are)

Gerrymandering is not as bad as it used to be, or as bad as it could be in the state...but his district is +22 R if I remember the numbers correctly. Sanford's I recently learned is +18, for reference.

[Iliyah]

7. The Republican party is

in an alternate reality. Ya'know the GOPers will go on and on and on and on cause facts are nothing and the constant reasoning is trying to get their misinformed base out to vote in 2014 and discredit Hillary C in 2016. Forget about the needs of the American people.

[JBoy]

8. Issa not wanting to create "some sort of stage show" is laughable.

Of course he wants a stage show, but entirely on his terms. The truth wouldn't be consistent with the script in his little play, so it has to be behind closed doors.

Petulant drama queen. Always ready for his closeup, but stay out of his shot.

[cynzke]

9. DEMAND OPEN HEARING

Issa has subject on his FB page. Go there and DEMAND PICKERING AND MULLEN testify in PUBLIC. Share with friends and ask them to do the same.

[90-percent]

10. a Republican Traditon

I think Darrell is honoring the cherished and noble works of Senator Joe McCarthy.

As classic rock groups have tribute bands, the Republicans have tribute politicians.

-90% Jimmy

[SCVDem]

16. The precedent against Issa is.....

Sandra Fluke!

Checkmate motherfu***r!

[OneAngryDemocrat]

20. The Circus ONLY Ends After...

The circus only ends after the clowns have left the stage.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/RockfordSOL/

[Gregorian]

21. Utter slime should not be allowed to represent this country. Impeachment is too good for these.

[MNBrewer]

23. Too much secrecy in government.

Public! YAY! And as slimy as Issa is, public is a requirement.

[spanone]

26. rec #100

[OregonBlue]

27. i.e., don't insult us in public and then ask us to defend ourselves in private. Issa is scum!!

[Rosa Luxemburg]

29. Issa has his own personal scandals

[Rex]

30. OH MY!

Excuse me while I pull up a chair!

[pacalo]

31. I caught Issa's shady offer when I watched last Sunday's MTP clip.

Issa's operating under Bush/Cheney's dictatorial handbook & had the gall to suggest that Pickering & Mullen go under a vetting process, in effect, behind closed doors before they officially testified before the committee. That's bound to raise eyebrows. Issa would need to know what their full testimony would be in order to shape the public's perception the way Issa wanted it to be when they appeared before the committee (on C-Span).

It's good to see that Pickering & Mullen took exception to it & asserted themselves with the letter.