Republicans to implement greater oversight if they take the majority in November.
QUICK FACTS:
- House Republicans are considering a number of inquiries and legislative reforms for the Department of Justice (DOJ) after being horrified by FBI wrongdoing and political investigations that have been described by a torrent of whistleblowers.
- The plans will go into effect if the GOP gains the majority in the House on November 8 and they follow through with their promised reform.
- Republicans on the Judiciary Committee are discussing several strategies for organizing inquiries and are writing legislation to bring the FBI and the Justice Department under scrutiny.
- Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) told journalists he is working on legislation that would de-centralize the DOJ’s oversight power from Washington.
- “The Department of Justice’s supervising of the FBI ought to be done out in the country by United States Attorney’s Offices, rather than having all key decisions focus where politics can Shanghai them here in Washington,” Bishop said.
POTENTIAL CHANGES FOR THE FBI:
- Plans for changes to the law enforcement division include moving Justice Department supervision of the FBI out of Washington.
- Another proposed change would include probing the FBI and DOJ with special committees such as those modeled after Congress’s probes of U.S. intelligence agencies in the 1970s.
- Congress is considering adding muscle to Congress’ referrals to the DOJ for criminal investigations and requiring FBI, ATF and other federal law enforcement agents to wear body cams during raids.
BACKGROUND:
- Republicans have also promised to probe the Biden administration’s implementation of “wokeness” in the military, according to Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN), should they take the majority in the House.
- “I think it’s one of our very top priorities to clean up the mess the administration has made with the excessive and dangerous COVID mandates on our troops at a time where we have historically low recruitment,” said Banks, chairman of the Republican Study Committee.
- The lawmaker said the GOP would likely block diversity and equity initiatives such as critical race theory: “Those are issues that we’ve been very passionate about in the minority, and I guarantee we’ll be just as passionate about them when we get the majority,” Banks went on to say.
