In a letter to Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, Senate Democrats this week demanded that the Republican party cover the costs of the House Select Committee on Benghazi, Roll Call reported on Wednesday morning.
“Over the past several weeks, several House Republicans have made clear what many observers have suspected all along: that the Select Committee has conducted a political inquisition aimed at former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Due to the political nature of the committee, we believe it is inappropriate that a reported 4.7 million taxpayer dollars were used to finance its operations and that the RNC subsequently orchestrated numerous fundraising opportunities in its wake,” Democrats wrote in the letter obtained by Roll Call.
The letter sent by Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and three members of his leadership team highlights House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s recent comments about the political goals of the Benghazi committee. The Democrats also mentioned a fundraising effort from the National Republican Congressional Committee launched in May 2014 that asked donors to help Republicans “go after Obama & Hillary Clinton,” referencing the committee.
The RNC slammed the Senate Democrats’ letter in a statement to Roll Call.
“Harry Reid’s pathetic attempt to inject politics into the final, definitive account of the 9/11 terrorist attack in Benghazi that killed four Americans dishonors their memory and has no basis in reality,” RNC National Press Secretary Allison Moore said in the statement. “This cheap political stunt from disgruntled members of the minority party is nothing more than an in-kind contribution to the Clinton campaign paid for with taxpayer dollars.”
