Republicans are big fans of projection. When they’re neck-deep in conflicts of interest, they like to hide it by accusing Democrats of such conflicts. When they leak stuff, they accuse Democrats. When they mismanage stuff, they accuse Democrats. And yesterday, Darrell Issa got caught doing just that. A year ago, on July 27, 2010, Issa [...]

Darrell Issa has no credibility when it comes to matters of transparency. We’ve seen Issa’s rank hypocrisy in the past. He dismissed concerns about Karl Rove doing business on RNC emails as a political stunt. And he suggested that apparently deliberate attempts to dismantle email archives at the White House was all about technology. So [...]

When news broke yesterday that Darrell Issa had fired his spokesperson, Kurt Bardella, for sharing emails with NYT reporter Mark Leibovich, I suggested, I suspect Issa just fired his spokesperson because Issa cares more about staying in the good graces of Politico than NYT. #WinTheMorning It was John Harris’ complaint that his reporters’ emails had [...]

When I first posted on Hank Johnson’s letter demanding an investigation into Hunton & Williams’ appropriation of counterterrorist techniques to attack citizen speech, I was a bit skeptical. Without a way to get some coverage of the demand, such a letter risks being yet one more angry letter into the void. But I will say [...]

When Michael Mukasey announced in 2008 no one would be charged for politicizing DOJ, I had this to say. Understand: Mukasey has turned into a terrible shill for the Administration. But it has been clear for over a year that the Administration would escape criminal charges for having committed massive violations of the Hatch Act. [...]

David Ignatius got it wrong, IMO, when he asked whether Darrell Issa is going to be the next Joe McCarthy. When you see the righteous gleam in Issa’s eye, recall other zealous congressional investigators who claimed to be doing the public’s business but ended up pursuing vendettas. I think of Robert F. Kennedy’s ruthless pursuit [...]

If the Democratic Party wants to survive the next two years, it needs to find a new baby-sitter for Darrell Issa. After all, no one was more gleefully prepared after the shellacking last Tuesday to take over and cause trouble for Democrats that Issa. He’s been planning a series of witch hunts for months. And [...]

The big outrage de jour making the rounds in the media currently is the porn scandal at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The problem was born and matured under Bush and Cox, it is the fact that it is symptomatic for the emaciation and gutting of the SEC which occurred at their hands and express direction.

You can follow along at the Committee stream or on CSPAN. Here are the witnesses for today’s hearing with links to testimony (PDF) attached: PANEL I The Honorable Raymond H. LaHood Secretary U.S. Department of Transportation Mr. David L. Strickland Administrator National Highway Traffic Safety Administration PANEL II Mr. Akio Toyoda President and CEO Toyota [...]

Lamar Smith thinks it’s more important to investigate lead tests for low income people than torture.