Boehner wants House chief administrative officer fired

House Minority Leader John Boehner on Wednesday called on Speaker Nancy Pelosi to fire House Chief Administrative Officer Dan Beard, arguing he is too partisan for the office.

Much of Boehner’s (R-Ohio) criticism echoed previously raised objections to Beard’s actions — taken with Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) support — to green the Capitol, which Boehner called politically motivated and fiscally irresponsible.

{mosads}“Mr. Beard’s complete disregard for the interests of American taxpayers and the recklessly partisan manner in which he has carried out his duties make him unfit for this office,” the Ohio Republican said in a letter to the Speaker.

“He has on many occasions exceeded his authority by involving himself and his staff in supporting and advocating the partisan policy objectives of the majority,” Boehner added, mentioning the Chief Administrative Office (CAO) website’s promotion of Beard’s visits with Democratic lawmakers.

A spokesman for Beard disputed the allegations in Boehner’s letter.

“Clearly, we don’t agree with the concerns raised in Mr. Boehner’s letter and we await the Speaker’s response since [the letter] was addressed to her,” said Jeff Ventura.

Pelosi responded at press time to Boehner’s letter, expressing her continued support of Beard.

“I reject your mischaracterization of Mr. Beard’s leadership and particularly object to your unwarranted accusations of partisanship or political involvement,” Pelosi wrote. “Those attacks are unjustified by the facts and unfairly impugn Mr. Beard’s record of accomplishment.”

Several Democratic lawmakers defended Beard, a former Democratic staffer, and said the GOP should examine its own inner workings.

“Dan Beard is a dedicated public servant who has saved taxpayer dollars by making Capitol operations more efficient,” said Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.). “If I were John Boehner, I would be reluctant to point a finger at Dan Beard; it just calls attention to the lack of initiative under Republican management.”

Beard’s predecessor, Jay Eagan, was appointed after members of both parties were consulted and reached an agreement. Pelosi chose Beard last year without Republican consultation, raising concerns within the GOP.

“The larger message here is that this should be a nonpartisan position chosen in a bipartisan nature,” said Michael Steel, spokesman for Boehner. “But it’s not, and as a result, [Beard] has lost the confidence of Republican members.”

The GOP leader’s criticism Wednesday took issue with Beard’s $90,000 purchase of carbon credits to counter carbon dioxide produced by the Capitol, as well as $700,000 used to assess a new lighting system for the Capitol dome.

Boehner also repeated criticism voiced earlier this month about the $17 million contract awarded to Restaurant Associates to manage the House cafeterias for seven years, which some lawmakers have complained was altered after it was approved by the committee.

Under the current contract, more than $600,000 — the cost of the cafeteria’s “greening” initiatives — is set to come out of the money Restaurant Associates pays the House annually in commission. As a result, the House will lose more than $4 million over the life of the contract, Boehner alleges.

“Mr. Beard exceeded his authority by making significant changes to the House food service contract, after it was approved by the Committee on House Administration,” Boehner wrote.

Several Democrats disagreed with Boehner’s comments, calling them unfounded and immature.

“This is just another example where differing priorities have led to attack instead of conversation,” said Rep. Sam Farr (D-Calif.). “Dan may be an easy target for attacks, but his hard work and foresight is appreciated by many.”

“I’m disgusted by Mr. Boehner’s childish assaults on the Speaker’s initiatives to green the Capitol,” Blumenauer said.

Steel said that Boehner decided to write the letter to Pelosi after the CAO’s website posted an article that Steel said was “a hit” on Rep. Vernon Ehlers (Mich.), the ranking Republican on the House Administration Committee. The article stated an environmental group was considering withdrawing its endorsement of Ehlers because of his objections to Beard’s greening actions.

“It definitely seemed like a swipe at Vern and beyond the pale,” Rep. Dan Lungren (R-Calif.) said of the article’s posting on the CAO website. “That’s not the proper role of the CAO. There’s no reason to accuse Ehlers of being a bomb-thrower. He’s one of the nicest and most fair guys in the world.”

Ehlers did not comment on the CAO’s website, but did say he was concerned about Beard’s appointment process and job performance.

“As a result of the closed appointment process, subsequent partisan behavior and questionable management actions taken by the Chief Administrative Officer, a considerable amount of bad feeling has been generated and a substantial number of my colleagues have lost confidence in the CAO,” Ehlers said.