McCarthy formally blocks Schiff, Swalwell from Intel panel

[brooklynite]

Source: The Hill

Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Tuesday formally rejected two Democrats — Reps. Adam Schiff (Calif.) and Eric Swalwell (Calif.) — from serving on the Intelligence Committee, escalating the two-year, tit-for-tat battle between the parties over who is qualified for certain positions on Capitol Hill.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) had written to McCarthy on Saturday asking that both Schiff and Swalwell be seated on the Intel panel, where membership assignments come solely at the discretion of the Speaker.

McCarthy rejected the request, saying Schiff and Swalwell’s previous actions make them unfit to serve on a panel with jurisdiction over and access to sensitive issues of national security.

“In order to maintain a standard worthy of this committee’s responsibilities, I am hereby rejecting the appointments of Representative Adam Schiff and Representative Eric Swalwell to serve on the Intelligence Committee,” he wrote in a letter to Jeffries.


Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3829218-mccarthy-formally-blocks-schiff-swalwell-from-intel-panel/

[bucolic_frolic]

1. No words

[keroro gunsou]

44. Two words:

Bitch, please.

This what happens when a spineless weasel gets the job of House Speaker despite not having a mandate or a sizable majority… got to get in bed with crazystupid.

[Firestorm49]

50. I wonder which former idiot President ( there's only one)

is pulling McCarthys strings.

[blm]

2. Jeffries needs McCarthy to detail the claims

he is making against them. Be specific, Kev.

[SoCalDavidS]

4. He Doesn't Have To Be Specific

He can say he doesn't like the color of their hair.

As Speaker, he has unlimited power in this particular matter.

[blm]

26. Of course, but, grab the narrative

and make a stink about it on camera for its lack of cause.

[NullTuples]

27. No, he really doesn't. Congress is run on traditions crafted by wealthy white men of privilege.

There are frightfully few actual rules with penalties that whoever is in power can't simply bend or ignore. In large part the founders simply assumed that whoever was going to be in control would understand that at least a facade of propriety over the nation was needed. Their blind spot was that someday a group driven by nothing but greed - either monetary, egotistical, or both - would come along, gain power and take full advantage of the fact that there really are no rules.

[ShazzieB]

3. So pathetically childish

Kevin has to block the 2 most qualified people in the House from serving on this committee, only because he promised some people with axes to grind that he would do so in order to get them to support (or at least not block) his bid for the Speakership.

Pathetic.

[SoCalDavidS]

7. What Makes You Think He's Not Doing It On His Own?

He may just want to be a Dick.

[littlemissmartypants]

35. There's plenty of supporting evidence for that!

[ShazzieB]

45. Oh, he's being a dick all right. But he's not doing it JUST to be a dick.

Here's a HuffPost article that explains it:

Kevin McCarthy Denies Intelligence Committee Seats To Eric Swalwell And Adam Schiff
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/kevin-mccarthy-eric-swalwell-adam-schiff-ilhan-omar_n_63d0839be4b0c8e3fc7a833a

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has avenged Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) by blocking two Democrats from serving on a House committee.

McCarthy announced Tuesday he would refuse to seat Democratic Reps. Eric Swalwell and Adam Schiff of California on the House Intelligence Committee — pure political payback for Democrats removing Greene and Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) from committees in 2021.

In a public letter to Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), who had named the pair to the intelligence committee, McCarthy said that “in order to maintain a standard worthy of this committee’s responsibilities,” he would reject the appointment of the two Democrats.

Greene has emerged as McCarthy’s top ally on the far-right flank of the Republican Party. Democrats booted her from committees in 2021 when it came out that she had trafficked online in conspiracy theories and violent rhetoric toward political opponents, especially Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), before coming to Congress. McCarthy won Greene’s support for his speakership partly by promising to put her back on committees if Republicans controlled the House — a promise he has kept.

[Delphinus]

22. Why would

kev want intelligent people on this committee?

I saw Adam's tweet and did I ever get a ton of folks blocked just from that thread.

[Evolve Dammit]

5. Mocking oversight is more gas lighting. Enough Mr. MTG. Meat puppet for Maggats. What a mockery.

The world must be wondering when the US collapses completely at this point.

[OAITW r.2.0]

6. "In order to maintain a standard worthy of this committee's responsibilities,"

did he say this with a straight face? McCarthy is dumbing down our national intelligence because he can't have intelligent people doing their due diligence. I hope that the Democrats on the Committee will keep them in the loop.

[Samrob]

31. So put some insurrectionists on the Intel Committee, that's keeping respectable...by GOP standards.

[YoshidaYui]

8. REVENGE POLITICS PROBABLY DIRECTED BY MARJORIE TAYLOR GREEN

she WILL BE RUNNING THE HOUSE, JUST you watch! "OWN THE LIBS!!" FUCK YOU REPUBLICANS

[sakabatou]

13. Yep, sounds like revenge politics to me.

[YoshidaYui]

21. I K R?

[ShazzieB]

47. That's what it is all right.

To put it crudely, MTG's got his balls in a Dixie cup right now. He'll do anything she wants just because she supported him for Speaker.

[LaMouffette]

9. Could McCarthy block ALL Dems from the Intelligence Committee? It's terrifying to think what the

Insurrectionist Caucus will do with the classified information they will be allowed to access. Could be they want to block Schiff and Swalwell not just out of vindictiveness, but also so that they will be free to run roughshod over the nation's most sensitive intelligence.

[MacKasey]

10. Kevin McCarthy is unfit

[CaliforniaPeggy]

12. Yes--for anything. n/t

[Hugh_Lebowski]

11. Unbelievable, esp. for Schiff who was the former Chair of the Panel

Obvs I want them both on there, but not taking Swalwell is at least somewhat defensible.

Excluding Schiff is definitely not.

Have I mentioned lately how much I hate these fucking people?

[Bev54]

14. How so? He has done absolutely nothing wrong.

[Hugh_Lebowski]

15. Because former Chairs almost never get kicked off the Intel panels when the House changes hands?

I didn't mean it as a diss on Swalwell, I love the guy. But this is a political process. Essentially, kicking off regular member Swalwell is less of a political affront then kicking off former chair Schiff.

Both are great on the panel, and both deserve a spot, to be clear. If this whole process were merit-based, I mean.

[agingdem]

17. why..because of a past association with a Chinese nationalist?

that's a reason to deny him on seat on the intelligence committee?..Trump colluded with the Russians, he had financial interests in China, he has ties to Saudi's MbS..all kosher, right, Kev???...

[ShazzieB]

46. No, because Kev is doing favors for MTG.

He has to kiss her ass a whole bunch now to reward her for supporting him for Speaker. This is just part of it.

[ananda]

16. I hope Dems make a lot of PERSISTENT loud noise about this...

and everything else the Reeps do.

[agingdem]

18. If Swalwell and Schiff are denied committee seats the

that frees up their time to appear on MSNBC and rip Kevin and the maggots to pieces...

[Mark.b2]

19. The Speaker shouldn't have this power....

They'll regret this precedent.

[Delphinus]

23. Welcome to DU!

[Mark.b2]

24. Thank you, Delphinus!

Been around a few years...mostly as a lurker.

[littlemissmartypants]

38. Welcome! ❤️

[JohnSJ]

20. Doesn't the full House get to vote on this?

[Rebl2]

25. No surprise there

He hates them and what they did to his sweetheart trump.

[NullTuples]

28. Elephant in the room - Putin's minions will now have access to all the Intelligence Committee knows.

And if you think they'll protect America instead of sell out, well...

[GenThePerservering]

29. Republicans have standards? NT

[JudyM]

30. Of course. Because having the most knowledgeable people on the committee is of no value to the US.

I’d say go straight to hell, but he’s sending us first.

[SouthernDem4ever]

32. McCarthy is so full of shit

opens his mouth and bile falls out. He can't give one good reason why they should not be part of those committtees.

[Rhiannon12866]

33. And assigns ant-vaxxer MTG to investigate Covid...

[BOSSHOG]

34. Isn't Kev so cute when he does things formally?

Does it not hurt to laugh so hard to hear someone like Kev-Kev with power from almighty high proclaiming that real patriots are unfit to serve? Issues of National security? Kev, drop the Mic.

Kevin like Bret Kavanaugh are possessed with conservative values. Me thinks it’s going to be a quick 2 years.

[niyad]

36. "escalating the two year tit for tat battle". FUCK YOU, hill, for that nasty little

bit of lying "bothsiderism".

[Ferrets are Cool]

37. "previous actions make them unfit to serve" No Sir, YOU are unfit to serve.

You are the MOST unfit to serve this Country. You filthy shell of a human.

[dobleremolque]

39. I have to believe that when you have known pipelines to our international enemies

serving in positions like this, the intelligence community has ways to deal with it.

Yeah, they are Members of Congress and the presumption is that they're entitled to see certain critical intelligence information. But that depends on the presumption that they are loyal to the nation. That presumption is invalid with the Republicans here.

Anyone who has read enough John LeCarré knows that you reveal turn-coat traitors by feeding them false information that's too juicy NOT to relay to your Russian handlers, and when that false information shows up in Moscow, you've identified your traitor.

Surely our intelligence experts have some way to detect then deflect the damage these insurrectionists can do and the betrayal they represent to the foundational principles of this country.

The Charles McGonigal arrest gives me some hope that our intelligence experts in the Executive branch are not going to go docile and meek before the current House of Representatives.

[littlemissmartypants]

40. I think the Democrats should create their own "Intelligence Committee."

It might not have the same power but it could still investigate things or call into questions the Republican's versions of events. Basically, investigate the investigators. Why not? ❤️

[Laura PourMeADrink]

41. Hmm. And it was stupid to align with someone else!!

[tonekat]

42. Sounds like they want an all GOP committee

Which would be illegitimate as far as I'm concerned.

[William Gustafson]

43. "Mr. Speaker".... "I request a vote of no confidence on Kevin McCarthy"....

is all "one member" of the House has to do to get a vote on removing McCarthy.... do it every day to slow down this shit show.....

[no_hypocrisy]

48. All I see in my mind is MTG laughing into her hands with glee.

Rep. Jefferies, nominate Nancy Pelosi to replace one of them.

[bullimiami]

49. tit for tat? dems remove someone from position for good cause. reps retaliate for spite.