Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) threatened to walk out of the Monday evening House Oversight Committee hearing over the way Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) conducted the IRS hearing.
“Mr. Chairman, I implore you to enforce the rules of this committee,” said, addressing Issa at the hearing, citing a rule that calls for decorum during questioning. “Badgering witnesses is inappropriate and shameful.”
Issa cut in to ask Speier if she is making a motion. After responding in the negative, she continued to rail against GOP behavior during the hearing.
“At this point I just want us to get back to basics and to run this committee as it should be run — with respect and decorum,” she said. “And badgering this commissioner, as virtually every member on the Republican side has done, is shameful. And it’s got to stop. Or else I’m telling you one member here is going to walk out and not return.”
Speier then refused to yield her time when asked and proceeded to ask her question.
Later in the hearing, the committee’s ranking member, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) apologized to IRS Commissioner John Koskinen for the “hell” Republicans put him through throughout the hearing.
Watch the clip via C-Span:
[H/t Roll Call]
If I treated a witness like this at trial, the judge would hold me in contempt.
Speaking of contempt, oh what I wouldn’t give to sit in that chair and just unload on these GOP pieces of shit. It’d make the news.
“These” types of hearings tend to be nothing but grandstanding. It s really pathetic to watch supposedly educated grownups acting like this.
And to think of all the legitimate reasons for investigation the Democrats passed by in the name of ‘moving forward’ when they had all three branches of govt…sigh.
It’s a sham hearing. It’s intended for GOoPer soundbites for Faux Snooze primarily…sadly most of the MSM has obliged him without calling him out on how rude and unprofessional he’s been to the people who have come to testify. I saw one soundbite where he called a witness “a hostile witness” with absolutely no grounds to accuse her of those words. Its a fucking Kangaroo Court. Isaa isn’t even a lawyer. He has no sense of how to conduct a hearing using legal prosecutorial means.
What ever happened to that Special Committee that was supposed to take the reins from Issa, I would guess so he wouldn’t continue to embarrass them so much?
The wealthiest person in congress…has to know something about evading legitimate taxes.
Anyone got a match?