House Democrats Want Hearing on Cabinet Members’ Flight Costs

Two Congressmen want a formal hearing into excessive travel spending by Trump administration cabinet officials.

Two House Democrats have formally requested that Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-SC) hold hearings to look into the “extravagant air travel” of Trump administration cabinet officials.

The letter making the request was sent by Ranking Member Elijah Cummings (D-MD) and Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL).

“Many agencies—including the White House—have refused to provide the information our Committee has requested to conduct our investigation, and without subpoenas, we cannot effectively investigate this matter,” Cummings and Krishnamoorthi wrote.  “We request that you hold a hearing on the extent of these improper flights and why the White House and several agencies have refused to provide the requested documents.”

The letter cited several examples of what Cummings and Krishnamoorthi felt were excessive travel spending that needed investigating, such as the cost of EPA administrator Scott Pruitt’s flights.

Pruitt’s expenses as EPA administrator have raised concern among lawmakers before. In addition to the House Oversight Committee asking questions, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce has made an inquiry as well.

The letter also noted that the House Oversight Committee has yet to receive all of the documents that have been requested from agencies on travel costs, noting that the Committee had previously sent 25 letters to agencies seeking information on improper air travel of cabinet officials.

“Despite these attempts, our Committee still has yet to receive all of the documents you and Ranking Member Cummings requested,” stated the letter. “It is unacceptable that the White House and several agencies have refused to provide our Committee with the documents we need to conduct or oversight responsibilities.”

A copy of the letter is included below.

2018-04-03 Travel Hearing Request Letter

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Ian Smith is one of the co-founders of FedSmith.com. He has over 20 years of combined experience in media and government services, having worked at two government contracting firms and an online news and web development company prior to his current role at FedSmith.