After House Oversight Committee Chair Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) quizzed Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards about her salary during a Tuesday hearing, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) took the congressman to task over his line of questioning.
“I first would like to register my opposition and my objection to the chairman beating up on a woman, on our witness today, for making a good salary,” Maloney said during the hearing.
She added that Chaffetz’s questions for Richards were “discriminatory.”
“The entire time I’ve been in Congress, I’ve never seen a witness beaten up and questioned about their salary,” she said. “Ms. Richards heads a distinguished organization providing health care services to millions of Americans. And I find it totally inappropriate and discriminatory.”
During the hearing, Chaffetz asked Richards, “Your compensation in 2009 was $353,000. Is that correct?”
Richards said she didn’t have the exact number available.
“It was. Congratulations,” Chaffetz said in response before asking Richards about a salary increase.
“In 2013, your compensation went up some $240,000. Your compensation, we’re showing, based on your tax returns, is $590,000. Correct?”
“That’s not my annual compensation,” Richards responded, noting that she earns $520,000 annually.
As she continued to explain what she earned in 2013, Chaffetz moved on to another question.
Watch Maloney’s comments below:
I was sick to my stomach watching this farse called a hearing. The main intention was to discredit Planned Parenthood with lies. They asked her questions then wouldn’t let her answer. The people who made the video were not there probably because they would have been shown to be liars. This was as ugly as ugly could get
And it doesn’t look as though it will improve anytime soon —
You couldn´t pay me enough to have to talk to assholes like Chaffetz. Not to mention the real and present danger that anyone even tangentially connected to providing women´s healthcare in the form of abortion faces every day in our violent nut ball country.
Ms. Richards demonstrated a forceful yet patient eloquence that would impress any fair-minded observer. More importantly, she had the facts on her side, which may not matter to right-wing zealots looking to score political points with their out of touch base, but I am confident it will matter to the majority of the electorate.
Yep, it was disgusting and made a mockery of congressional hearings. As if the GOTP public serpents have not done this for many years now.