On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Committee rejected a resolution requiring the Department of Justice (DOJ) to turn over records on federal agents or assets that encouraged protesters to enter the Capitol on January 6.
The original version of the resolution, introduced by Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ-04) last Friday, focused solely on Ray Epps, an Arizona man and former Oath Keeper leader accused of working as a federal informant. During Wednesday’s hearing, Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY-04) amended the resolution to focus on federal involvement.
While Republicans urged transparency concerning Epps’ involvement, Democrats claimed ignorance or avoidance of the topic. Aside from Congressman Jamie Raskin (D-MD-08), who called Epps a “poor schmuck” being demonized by his own party, Democrats focused on expressing disdain for Republican characterizations of the January 6 riot.
ICYMI today: @RepThomasMassie amended @RepGosar resolution for DOJ records on #RayEpps , broadened to focus on "agents or assets of federal government who encouraged protesters to enter the Capitol building on January 6." House Judiciary Committee rejected it.
Massie urged the committee to pass the resolution, noting that the Biden administration hasn’t been completely transparent about Epps. He declared that the DOJ’s lack of interest in Epps defied logic, especially since the Biden administration prosecuted all other January 6 rioters and launched a formal committee to investigate the riot.
Massie showed multiple video clips of Epps telling protesters on January 5 and 6 to “go into the Capitol.” Massie stated that Epps is the only person on video telling protestors to go into the Capitol, noting that the first breach of the Capitol grounds occurred directly after Epps whispered into one of the trespasser’s ears.
Massie recounted investigative reporters’ details of the FBI’s action or inaction concerning Epps. This included the Revolver News reports (first and second) that the FBI listed Epps initially on their Most Wanted page for January 6 rioters, but later removed him without explanation. This also included Epoch Times reports (first and second) that Epps was the only protestor that had a premonition of the pipe bombs discovered on January 6. Additionally, this included New York Times reporting on Epps’ alleged text messages to his nephew admitting that he helped people breach the Capitol.
“[Epps’ involvement is] easily proven false if they would release this information. If the federal government would tell us, point-blank, no uncertain terms, under oath, not some staffer, not some statement released on some hearsay, not by leaking it to the New York Times, not by trying to soften the blow by putting things out in the press, just come here and tell us,” said Massie.
Massie rejected the House Select Committee to Investigate January 6 (January 6 Committee) assessment of Epps. In January, the committee revealed that Epps told them that he wasn’t working with or for any law enforcement agency on or before January 6. According to Massie, the committee promised to release a transcript of their interview with Epps. They haven’t.
The Select Committee is aware of unsupported claims that Ray Epps was an FBI informant based on the fact that he was on the FBI Wanted list and then was removed from that list without being charged.
Congressman Dan Bishop (R-NC-09) remarked that there are different standards of justice for Republicans versus Democrats: former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago documents versus Hillary Clinton’s emails, the months of Black Lives Matter (BLM) riots nationwide in 2020 versus the single afternoon of rioting last January.
“[M]any Americans believe there is a dual standard of justice in the country,” said Bishop. “Nothing reinforces Americans’ sense of a dual standard of justice more than the vehement embrace by Democrats of unequal consequences for like conduct. And it is done all the time.”
Watch the full debate on the resolution below:
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Republican Blake Masters accrued over 256,000 votes, pulling ahead of contenders Jim Lamon (187,714 votes), Attorney General Mark Brnovich (119,232 votes), Mick McGuire (57,895 votes), and Justin Olson (33,307). Former President Donald Trump endorsed Masters.
Discussing the unfortunate state of our schools with some concerned parents. We’re gonna put parents back in charge pic.twitter.com/Enryuh6r9Q
The Libertarian Party candidate, Marc Victor, ran uncontested as well. He earned just under 2,600 votes.
PRESS RELEASE! It’s Official: Marc J. Victor Will Offer Arizonans an Independent Option for the U.S. Senate The Libertarian Party’s nominee for the U.S. Senate, Marc J. Victor, says he is looking forward to offering voters a “credible, serious, and independent” choice #ussenatepic.twitter.com/vxOHiaxMKZ
Democrat Jevin Hodge bested Adam Metzendorf, over 39,200 votes to over 24,600 votes.
Our sights are set on November, we’re going to work tirelessly to defeat Shady Schweikert pic.twitter.com/OG9rl2eDVR
— Jevin D. Hodge for Congress (@JevinHodge) August 4, 2022
Incumbent David Schweikert (R-AZ-06), who had Trump’s endorsement, accrued over 42,000 votes, achieving 10 percent more of the vote than runner-up Elijah Norton and 20 percent more of the vote than Josh Barnett.
The District 1 Republican primary was one of the more contested ones. Schweikert and Norton lobbed accusations at one another over ethics, either concerning campaign signs or finances. The Federal Election Commission (FEC) fined Schweikert $125,000 for 11 ethics violations.
Congress, District 2: Crane v. O’Halleran
Republican Eli Crane beat out State Representative Walt Blackman (R-Snowflake), earning just under 28,400 votes over Blackman’s over 20,400 votes. The remainder of the heavily-contested primary split the vote five different ways: Mark DeLuzio, under 14,800 votes; John Moore, over 6,000 votes; Andy Yates, just under 6,000 votes; Steven Krystofiak, just over 4,700 votes; and Ron Watkins in last, with just over 3,100 votes.
Gallego pledged to “make an example” of Republican candidate Jeff Zink, who ran uncontested and earned over 11,500 votes. Zink’s son, Texas resident Ryan Zink, was arrested over his presence at the January 6, 2021 riot at the Capitol. The elder Zink attended the rally, but didn’t participate in the riot.
If you would like to know what is really happening in Arizona then come and learn the truth https://t.co/TKf90gKKMe
— RealJeffZinkForCongress (@realJeffZink) July 27, 2022
Congress, District 4: Cooper v. Stanton
Republican Kelly Cooper (just under 16,700 votes) edged out a narrow victory over opponents Tanya Wheeless (over 13,900 votes), Dave Giles (nearly 11,000), Rene Lopez (over 8,000 votes), Rene Lopez (over 8,000), and Jerone Davison (over 7,000).
This is the reality of our border crisis. The Democrats' policies have welcomed felons to illegally enter our Nation and integrate themselves into our once secure Arizona communities. Meanwhile, Greg Stanton has done absolutely nothing! https://t.co/OTXHHXDo1a
Democratic incumbent Greg Stanton (D-AZ-09) ran uncontested, earning over 51,700 votes.
Domestic violence survivors are often forced to repeat their trauma through revictimization—it's wrong that my friend and colleague @DebbieLesko was forced to endure it today. https://t.co/QxvFVsBMmY
Incumbent Republican Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) ran uncontested, earning over 73,300 votes.
Biggs will face off against Democrat Javier Ramos, who ran uncontested and pulled over 41,500 votes.
It's exciting when Congress actually works together to get things done. Adding #Finland and #Sweden to #NATO will make us stronger against #China and #Russia and anyone who voted "yea" can be proud to be a part of that.https://t.co/IJ8nvkRlDz
Republican Juan Ciscomani won a crowded race, beating out four other opponents with over 43,800 votes. Brandon Martin earned over 12,200 votes, Kathleen Winn earned over 17,200 votes, Young Mayberry earned over 7,900 votes, and Lucretia Free earned over 4,400 votes.
🚨FIRST AD LAUNCHED🚨
I am running for the U.S. Congress to fight to secure our border and preserve the #AmericanDream. 🇺🇸 #AZ06
In a slightly-less crowded race, Democrat and former state legislator Kirsten Engel (over 49,800 votes) beat out State Representative Daniel Hernandez (D-Tucson), who earned over 28,600 votes, and Avery Anderson, who earned over 5,000 votes.
Congress, District 7: Grijalva v. Pozzolo
Incumbent Democrat Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ-03) ran uncontested, pulling over 56,000 votes.
As climate change causes temperatures to soar, it's critical that we protect our workers from the heat.
That's why Congress needs to pass the Asuncion Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act to ensure the safety and health of workers who work in extreme conditions. https://t.co/UHDByQpQUX
Grijalva will face off against Republican candidate Luis Pozzolo, who earned over 17,500 votes compared to his opponent, Nina Becker, with over 8,000 votes.
— Luis Pozzolo 4 Congress (@Luis4Congress) August 4, 2022
Congress, District 8: Lesko
Incumbent Republican Debbie Lesko (R-AZ-08) ran uncontested, and faces no opponents in the general election.
Congress, District 9: Gosar
Incumbent Republican Paul Gosar (R-AZ-04) emerged victorious in a crowded primary with over 58,200 votes. He beat out three opponents: Randy Kutz, over 11,500 votes; Adam Morgan, nearly 11,100 votes; and Sandra Dowling, over 8,100 votes.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
On Friday, Congressman Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) introduced legislation proposing U.S. withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO). The “WHO Withdrawal Act” would also prohibit U.S. funds from being given to the WHO or any of its successor organizations.
Biggs’ proposal would continue previous efforts by former President Donald Trump in 2020 over the WHO’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. President Joe Biden reversed those efforts upon assuming office.
Biggs echoed Trump’s sentiments on the WHO as an unreliable hotbed of “mismanagement, cover-ups, and failures” warranting U.S. secession.
“For years, the WHO has undermined American interests and remains one of the most corrupt and ineffective international institutions,” remarked Biggs.
Today, I introduced the WHO Withdrawal Act.
It requires the President to withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO), repeals the law that originally authorized the U.S. to join the WHO, and prevents taxpayer money from being spent to participate in it.
Biggs further accused the WHO of doing the bidding of the Chinese government, as well as ruining public health investigations such as the one discerning the origins of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China.
The World Health Organization has been compromised by China and has sabotaged many public health investigations – including the COVID investigation in Wuhan.
17 other congressmen signed on as cosponsors to Biggs’ proposal, including Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ-04).
Gosar responded that the bill was of “America First” caliber, alluding to Trump’s popular presidential slogan.
THREAD:
My WHO Withdrawal Act is necessary more than ever.
The World Health Organization has undermined American interests, remains one of the most corrupt international institutions, and has been compromised by China.
Though Congresswoman Debbie Lesko (R-AZ-08) was absent from the list of cosponsors on Biggs’ bill, she did sign onto a similar bill introduced by Congressman Chip Roy (R-TX-21) last January. That legislation would prohibit the U.S. from funding the WHO. It hasn’t made it out of committee.
An hour after Biggs announced his WHO Withdrawal Act, Lesko reminded constituents of her support for Roy’s legislation.
I’m proud to cosponsor @RepChipRoy's No Taxpayer Funding for the World Health Organization Act to PROHIBIT our nation from financially supporting the WHO, which promotes the Chinese Communist Party‘s lies about COVID-19.
— Congresswoman Debbie Lesko (@RepDLesko) June 3, 2022
Historically, the U.S. was the largest funder of the WHO. At present, this country ranks as the third-largest contributor. Both Germany and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation contributed more to the WHO from 2020 to 2021. Germany gave nearly 1.27 billion, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation gave $751 million, and the U.S. gave $693 million.
WHO was founded in 1948 as an international health work agency within the United Nations (UN).
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Reporters who embark on their own investigations rather than relying on Biden administration-approved information may find themselves under the FBI and DOJ microscope. The practice was common in the Obama administration, and it appears that it may be standard for the Biden administration as well.
Two such investigative reporters testified earlier this month in an off-site congressional hearing chaired by Congressman Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05). Biggs and other members of the House Freedom Caucus pledged to draft legislation to ensure reporters in the future wouldn’t endure what those who testified faced under the Obama and Biden administrations.
Biggs accused Biden of “following in the footsteps” of his predecessor, former President Barack Obama, in reference to what James O’Keefe, the founder and president of the investigative reporting organization, Project Veritas, endured in comparison to what acclaimed investigative reporter Sharyl Attkisson endured under the Obama administration.
BREAKING VIDEO: Unconstitutional Pre-Dawn FBI Raid on Project Veritas Journalist Shows Armed Agents Clutching Weapons, Tossing Belongings, and Ransacking Home at Direction of Biden DOJ
The Obama DOJ surveilled Attkisson illegally for her investigation into the “Fast and Furious” Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) scandal. “Fast and Furious” was a secret government operation of “gunwalking,” or selling firearms illegally to straw buyers in the hopes that they could be tracked to Mexican cartel leaders. The operation was deemed a failure as federal law enforcement lost track of the weapons sold. In 2010, two of their guns resurfaced at the murder scene of U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry, exposing the ATF’s secret operation.
Attkisson testified that the DOJ and FBI engaged in multiple operations against her, surveilling her and her family’s computer activity while she worked at CBS News. However, the Obama administration went beyond mere surveillance. Attkisson revealed that one of the agents attempted to implant child pornography in her husband’s computer.
“Imagine how you ever get out of that. They knew we had a young daughter at home and had ‘allegedly’ conspired to do that,” said Attkisson.
She noted that agents didn’t have court orders to surveil her or infiltrate her former employers’ communications.
“Too often the whistleblowers get punished while the criminals and abusers get a pass,” observed Attkisson.
To date, the DOJ never faced penalties for surveilling Attkisson.
The hearing also featured testimony from O’Keefe. The Biden DOJ surveilled and invaded Project Veritas for their reporting on Ashley Biden’s diary. The DOJ’s actions prompted several statements from the ACLU criticizing the precedent set by the Biden administration.
O’Keefe reported that the FBI took 47 devices from his organization over their investigation into the diary. He showed a short clip of the raid. O’Keefe said that in less than a month, Ashley Biden’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, had her request, which he called a “political favor,” approved for a district court to issue secret subpoenas, orders, and warrants against Project Veritas with gag orders. O’Keefe explained that the court declared that he wasn’t a journalist because he didn’t receive permission from the subjects of his investigative journalism.
“We did nothing wrong other than the non-crime of investigating a story, as journalists do,” said O’Keefe. “Obviously we can’t trust the Department of Justice to define who is and who is not a journalist depending on who is in charge.”
O’Keefe requested that the Freedom Caucus convene a Bartnicki hearing, referring to the 2001 Supreme Court ruling that the First Amendment protection extends to illegally interception communications.
Watch the entire hearing here:
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Following a controversial vote against a bill addressing the baby formula shortage, Congressman Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) claimed that Congress’ plan would exacerbate the crisis. Not only that: Biggs ventured that the legislation, HR7791 or the “Access to Baby Formula Act of 2022,” would put the nation in worse shape amid the burgeoning inflation crisis.
Biggs explained that the bill would only bloat the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) at the expense of families. Only families between 100 and 185 percent of the federal poverty income guidelines qualify for WIC.
“Throwing tens of millions of dollars at the FDA — an agency arguably responsible for facilitating this crisis — is not a viable solution. Empowering the Secretary of the USDA so that they can waive administrative requirements for the WIC program is ineffective and artificial,” wrote Biggs. “This legislation would make baby formula shortages worse for most Americans. It will allow WIC to utilize a far greater portion of the baby formula market, crowding out many hard-working American families. The better solutions are to distribute formula currently in the hands of federal agencies and reduce regulatory barriers that would allow for the expansion of domestic formula production.”
THREAD re: Baby Formula Vote.
It is imperative to find solutions to address Biden’s baby formula crisis.
But what my congressional colleagues have proposed tonight does not address the core issues of this crisis.
HR7791 was one of two bills considered by Congress to address the baby formula crisis; it was passed Thursday in the Senate following passage in the House on Wednesday. It does not produce more formula, and it doesn’t help all families. Rather, it enables the FDA to scale back on its traditional regulatory powers to fast-track approvals and open up more options within WIC — not families outside the program. It was introduced by Congresswoman Jahana Hayes (D-CT-05) on Tuesday.
The other bill, HR7790 or the “Infant Formula Supplemental Appropriations Act,” passed the House on Wednesday largely along party lines, 231-192, with 12 Republicans joining Democrats to pass the bill. HR7790 would allocate $28 million to the FDA to increase staffing, therefore increasing the speed by which it inspects baby formula prior to being sold, and to commence research on best practices to prevent future shortages.
Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ-04) also voted against the HR7790, joined by Lauren Boebert (R-CO-03), Matt Gaetz (R-FL-01), Louie Gohmert (R-TX-01), Chip Roy (R-TX-21), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA-14), Clay Higgins (R-LA-), and Thomas Massie (R-KY-).
The other legislators offered similar rationale for voting against the bill.
Boebert blamed the shortage on the FDA for closing the Abbott plant.
The FDA caused the baby formula shortage by unfairly closing the Abbott plant based on charges proven untrue.
Now, Pelosi wants to give the FDA a $28 million raise!
Democrats should be ashamed for pushing messaging bills & not real solutions. End the games and feed the babies!
Gaetz noted that the legislation was just another emergency authority to grow government.
“All considered, government-empowered swings to markets typically create more problems than they solve,” wrote Gaetz.
H.R. 7791 would make baby formula shortages worse for most Americans. It will allow WIC to utilize a far greater portion of the baby formula market, crowding out many hard-working American families. (1/2)
Gohmert proposed a different plan altogether: remove the FDA from the equation entirely. He rebutted claims that the Abbott plant was shut down over contamination concerns, noting that the FDA found no proof to justify their contamination claims and didn’t employ a plan to cover potential shortages once they forced the plant’s shutdown.
“There was no easing of restrictions by the FDA, no reopening plan from the FDA and not even an apparent awareness of the consequences of their actions until there was a critical shortage and American mothers were unable to feed their babies,” wrote Gohmert. “The FDA got us into this mess and they cannot get us out of it.”
1/6 Giving #FDA millions won't produce one ounce of #babyformula. Getting the FDA out of the way would accomplish that new production. The shutdown and subsequent investigation of the Abbott facility by the Biden FDA found no deadly bacteria in products. #BidenBabyFormulaCrisis
President Joe Biden announced earlier this week that he was invoking the Defense Production Act (DPA) and launching a program, Operation Fly Formula, to curb the baby formula shortage. The DPA will require suppliers to prioritize baby formula producers in their distribution above other customers. The program directs the Defense Department to secure baby formula overseas.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
