Oversight

• HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE (6/09/08) — Chairman John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) invited former White House press secretary Scott McClellan to testify at a June 20 committee hearing concerning the role the administration played in the Valerie Plame leak.

“In his book, Mr. McClellan suggests that senior White House officials may have obstructed justice and engaged in a cover-up regarding the Valerie Plame leak. This alleged activity could well extend beyond the scope of the offense for which Scooter Libby has been convicted and deserves further attention,” Conyers said.

{mosads}• SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE (6/06/08) — Chairman Joseph Biden Jr. (D-Del.) and Sens. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), John Kerry (D-Mass.), and Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) wrote a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates expressing concern over the lack of communication between the White House and Congress in regards to current negotiations with Iraq.

“We write regarding the two agreements that the administration is negotiating with Iraq. The committee held a hearing on these two agreements on April 10, during which administration witnesses told the committee that the executive branch would consult closely with Congress ‘throughout the entire process.’ Thus far, the administration has not followed through on this commitment,” the letter stated.

• SENATE SMALL BUSINESS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP COMMITTEE (6/06/08) — Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) requested that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigate the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) lender oversight system. A recent report by the inspector general found weaknesses in the SBA’s lender oversight, which led to the loss of $329 million for its largest loan program.

“Since the string of reports by their own inspector general hasn’t been enough to spur them into action, this investigation is a wake-up to the Bush administration to get safeguards in place to keep these important programs strong. Especially during these tough economic times, we need to ensure that our nation’s taxpayer dollars are invested wisely, and that our country’s small businesses have access to the credit they need to grow their business,” said Kerry.