Towns Likely to Get Oversight Committee Slot (and why you should care)
So, it appears that Edolphus Towns (D-NY) is the runaway favorite to take the chairmanship of the House Oversight & Government Reform Committee, with potential contenders Elijah Cummings (D-MD) and Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) saying they won’t force the issue. But no one appears to have any idea what would be on his agenda for the committee, despite the fact that he has served in the House for over a quarter of a century (and I’ve asked a lot of Hill beat reporters about this). And there are very good reasons to be interested in what this committee will be up to.
The House Oversight & Government Reform Committee is the watchdog of the House. They can investigate just about anything they want to. Outgoing Chair Henry Waxman (D-CA) has had a field day since taking the leadership slot in 2007. He’s been able to call the Bush Administration out onto the carpet on everything from shipping cash to Iraq (where it disappeared) to attempts to undermine federal clean air regulations. In short, this is a powerful committee. AND, it’s the only committee in the House that has such broad authority. It is not limited to any specific arena. It could be a powerful tool for rooting out corruption and waste in any corner of governmental endeavor, or it could be a do-nothing committee. I’m curious to find out which will be the case.
-Ship
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