TPMMuckraker Kevin Johnson
Darrell Issa
No Let Up: Darrell Issa's Tireless Quest For Scandal
Zachary Roth | April 23, 2010, 8:35AM
Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA)
Remember the 1990s, when Newt Gingrich, Dan Burton and co. managed to create a steady stream of outrage by playing up every Clinton administration "scandal," no matter how minor? Or how about the last years of the Bush administration, when Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) seemed to function as a one-man investigative machine, making sure that no Bush administration wrong-doing went unexamined?
Today that role is being played by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), the ranking Republican on the House Oversight committee. But despite the steady stream of made-to-order conspiracy theories coming from Fox News and the Tea Party crowd, it's a much harder job. That's largely because Issa's party is in the minority, so he doesn't have the power to compel testimony or subpoena documents. And it's perhaps also because, though the Obama administration is far from squeaky clean, Issa just hasn't had the kind of material to work with that his predecessors did.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS (151) | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (6)Topics: ACORN, AIG, AmeriCorps, Barack Obama, Census, DNC , Darrell Issa, Fox News, Gerald Walpin, Goldman Sachs, Google, Henry Waxman, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Joe Sestak, Kevin Johnson, Mary Schapiro, Newt Gingrich, Republican National Committee, Securities and Exchange Commission, Tea Parties, Timothy Geithner
Gerald Walpin
GOP Inquiry Fails To Show Obama's Firing Of AmeriCorps IG Was Politicized
Justin Elliott | November 20, 2009, 6:52PM
Gerald Walpin and Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson
A congressional GOP inquiry into the firing of the inspector general for AmeriCorps has been garnering headlines mostly for revealing details of allegations of sexual misconduct by Sacramento Mayor and Obama ally Kevin Johnson. But on the key question of whether the IG, Gerald Walpin, was fired for improper political reasons, the report brings little new to the table.
Prepared by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), the report asserts that the White House's "failure to use a transparent process to effectuate Walpin's removal deprived the President of an opportunity to explain his action in an appropriate way."
PERMALINK | COMMENTS (12) | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (3)Topics: AmeriCorps, Barack Obama, Chuck Grassley, Darrell Issa, Gerald Walpin, Kevin Johnson
Swiftboating
Notorious PR Firm That Reps Swift Boaters, Creationists, PhRMA Now Helping Fired IG
Justin Elliott | November 20, 2009, 5:12PM
Gerald Walpin
A heavy-hitting conservative public relations firm that flacked for Swift Boat Veterans for Truth and boasts an impressive array of right-wing clients is now helping Gerald Walpin, who was fired this summer by President Obama as the inspector general for AmeriCorps.
Creative Response Concepts Public Relations (CRC) is representing Walpin, a secretary who answered the phone at the company confirmed to TPMmuckraker today.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS (5) | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (1)Topics: AmeriCorps, CRC, Chuck Grassley, Creative Response Concepts Public Relations, Darrell Issa, Gerald Walpin, Greg Mueller, Kevin Johnson, Republican National Committee, Swiftboating
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