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Criminal Charges on the Way in GSA Scandal?

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    Rep. Jeff Denham, (R-Calif.), on the investigation into the GSA spending scandal.

  • Duration 4:56
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This transcript is automatically generated

I'm joined now by congressman jumped up.

Chairman of the house subcommittee on economic development.

Public buildings and emergency management -- -- the hearing on the GSA scandal and it is good congressman to have you with this.

This gets worse with every passing day I've got to issue this to Begin.

Did you are -- -- your committee in the transportation committee.

Have any inkling that anything approaching this was.

Going -- Now nobody could -- ever imagined some of the wasteful spending.

As some of the corruption and fraud that's gone on through this entire process and nobody certainly -- ever imagine that once inspector general came in and issued its first report.

That they wouldn't stop this egregious behavior.

Not stopping and it seems as if it in fact accelerated.

Eight.

It just it's mind numbing to think of what's going on hearing and congressman mica now being accused.

Well accusing senator -- of trying to endemic to intimidate him into stopping these hearings your reaction.

Well there's certainly been a lot of people embarrassed by these hearings embarrassed by the action GSA.

But the American public should be embarrassed that their government is out there spending money like -- -- at that time when the president is out there are trying to raise taxes and they're spending money on.

These huge trips many trips over ten different trips to Las Vegas in these.

-- when he 200 square foot rooms.

Palm Springs trips taking in terms of the many different -- -- -- even taking their entire executive team to a New Orleans.

I mean it just goes on and not and it's happened out over the last few months I mean some would try to save is something -- happened over the last couple years but it's still going on -- today.

And nearly.

This is still in this job as are many others what in the world how can this kind of content to our.

And by the way his punishment for his conduct here for which he's apologized in the same time invoke the Fifth Amendment which is a rather -- -- He's getting paid to not work by the federal government.

How can this be tolerated how can it be sanctioned in permitted.

By the United States kind.

Well it's not gonna be taller tolerated that's that's the whole reason that we held our hearing we want to make sure that.

We hold them accountable.

That just putting somebody on administrative leave is not enough we not only one -- fired.

But in some cases there's going to be people who go to jail I mean this is now been refer to the Department of Justice I've read through the transcripts transcripts -- certainly some laws that have been broken here.

And we also want the money be paid back where they went out and wasted taxpayer dollars.

And spent -- in any corrupt the way we want that money paid back and then we wanna make sure this never happens again we're going to be introducing legislation.

So we can actually see this plus months and we can see their budget on an annual basis and it.

We have some transparency to the taxpayer let.

Or is the president or is the Obama administration in this.

They have been all but silent throughout.

They have been -- the one thing became clear and our committee.

Was that they've had several meetings with the white house with the administration.

All the way to the the president's chief of staff.

You know they were very well aware this a year and a half ago and yet -- continue to let this go -- Nobody knew it was even fired or put on administrative leave until after we we announced -- -- -- gonna have a hearing going deeper into this whole issue.

And how soon it does that -- Well we've got two new investigations is that have already been launched.

Criminal activity has been referred to the department of justice and we're gonna continue to hold hearings on this issue until we get a result.

And I've actually even issued a warning.

That if they continue to Stonewall as they continue to hide these budgets away from the American taxpayer.

We're gonna fight to abolish TSA all together it's up to them to justify why they need to exist.

The -- referrals.

The inspector general Brian Miller has said that he would do so.

You're sub committee the transportation committee with oversight power.

Absolutely.

You know the whole idea of the inspector general comes in -- an investigation wants a whistleblowers stepped forward.

But then you know they've got to determine whether they continue to keep going or whether -- see that there's nothing there well in this case not only did they see that there was something happening.

But they are the ones that went ahead and launched the second and third investigation and escalated this because they saw -- of wrongdoing we GSA is the agency.

That sets the use the standard for all other agencies of this is happening in GSA.

It's obvious that there are other things that are happening in these other agencies as well whether having these conferences and lavish spending.

And indeed scandals.

Are extending across the executive branch even as we speak.

Congressman Jeff -- thank you for being with us.

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