Chuck Grassley Demands State Dept IG Open A Probe Into John Kerry
In a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Chuck Grassley called for an IG probe into John Kerry. Grassley wrote that it is “unclear exactly what matters Mr. Kerry has been barred from working on and whether he has received any waivers for specific matters that he would otherwise be recused from”
“The operation of good government requires faithful adherence to ethical rules “President Biden has the power to act and so do you,” Grassley added.
Kerry has denied all of the charges but not many people are buying it. The admin also gave conflicting statements with some saying Kerry never talked to Iran while others say the strikes were public knowledge.
From Axios:
The intrigue: The State Department told Axios last week Kerry has signed a Biden-imposed ethics pledge barring him from participating in specific official actions affecting his former clients and employers.
He’s also bound by federal ethics laws restricting that activity.
Grassley wants to know precisely what Kerry is recused from doing, and whether any of those rules have been waived.
The senator’s letter also requests “all records, including memoranda, emails and other similar documents, relating to all evaluations of potential, apparent and/or actual conflicts of interest.”
The department declined to comment about the letter.
From Saracarter:
In a leaked recorded interview, Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif reportedly claimed that Kerry told him about covert Israeli operations on Iranian targets in Syria. Kerry denies the allegations.
Yet, the Biden Administration has not commented on the situation. Grassley, along with other senators, sent a letter to President Biden early last week to ask him to investigate Kerry. That letter went unanswered.
Now, as ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, Grassley is asking that records regarding meetings Kerry had with Zarif be sent to the committee for review. His deadline is May 18th.“President Biden has the power to act and so do you,” Grassley writes in the letters.
But, when this reporter reached out to the State Department Inspector General for comment, a spokesperson said “We have no additional information to share at this time.”
The State Department echoed the empty statement. “The department respects the role of congress and does not comment on congressional correspondence,” a State Department spokesperson told SaraACarter.com
Many calls for action have gone unanswered. While some have asked that Kerry resign from his current position as presidential envoy for climate on the National Security Council, others like Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) are simply asking that Kerry’s security clearance be temporarily suspended while he is investigated. So far, nothing has changed.