Facts First USA calls for investigation into Comer’s Santos-esque explanations of alleged whistleblowers disappearing
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Facts First USA is releasing a letter sent to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia calling for an investigation to get to the bottom of Congressman Comer’s Santos-esque explanations of alleged whistleblowers disappearing and to determine if Comer, the whistleblower, or both have committed a crime.
“Comer is telling so many different versions of this story it would make George Santos blush,” said Facts First USA President David Brock. “Comer recently admitted to participating in a crime to the New York Times of using stolen emails to attack his former girlfriend who credibly accused Comer of abusing her. Now it seems Comers is also admitting that he, his supposed whistleblower, or both are also guilty of lying during their investigation.”
Under 18 U.S.C. § 1001, it is a federal crime to knowingly and willfully make “any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation” with respect to “any investigation or review, conducted pursuant to the authority of any committee, subcommittee, commission or office of the Congress.” And if it was Comer who lied, the Constitution’s Speech and Debate Clause doesn’t protect him because he also repeated his lies across right-wing media.
The full copy of the letter is below:
May 15, 2023
Matthew Graves
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia
601 D Street NW
Washington, DC 20004
Dear U.S. Attorney Graves:
Facts First USA is a bipartisan organization focused on ensuring that our national discourse is grounded in facts and honest debate.
The House Republican Conference is on notice that a key member of their slim majority has likely engaged in criminal activity and may well soon be a convicted felon. Not only has the Republican leadership failed to oust known fabulist George Santos, it appears that they are now mimicking his behavior. We write to you regarding that conduct.
Representative James Comer recently revealed that the “informant” he is relying on for his unsubstantiated allegations against President Biden cannot be located. In truth, there is a strong possibility that the “informant” that Representative Comer has been speaking about does not exist. This would explain why Representative Comer never produces the evidence he says demonstrates criminal conduct on the part of the Biden family.
Relying on his modus operandi of insinuendo unsupported by fact, Representative Comer has hinted that the “informant” going missing may signal something nefarious by the Biden Administration. In the same breath, though, he acknowledges that nine of the ten informants that he and the Oversight Committee have been relying on are “currently in court, they’re currently in jail, or they’re currently missing.”
This Santos-esque explanation can easily be unraveled through a proper investigation by your office. Such a review is warranted because it appears a crime has been committed – just not the one Representative Comer would have us believe.
Under 18 U.S.C. § 1001, it constitutes a federal crime to knowingly and willfully make “any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation” with respect to “any investigation or review, conducted pursuant to the authority of any committee, subcommittee, commission or office of the Congress.” Thus, if there is a whistleblower who concocted a story about an informant, doing so violated Section 1001. Alternatively, it is Representative Comer who violated the law by lying to the American people about the existence of an informant. To be clear, if it is Representative Comer who has manufactured this false information, the Constitution’s Speech and Debate Clause provides him no shelter because Representative Comer has repeated his lies across the rightwing media. See United States v. Brewster, 408 U.S. 502 (1972).
We therefore call on your office to investigate this matter and to determine the source of the misinformation. Representative Comer has, presumably, also called on your office to investigate the “informant’s” disappearance, so you could combine those investigations to save resources.
If your office decides to investigate, Facts First USA is prepared to provide your office with a compilation of Representative Comer’s false and misleading statements regarding his Committee’s work to show a troubling pattern of potentially criminal behavior.
Thank you for your service.
Sincerely,
/s/ Maria Cardona /s/ David Jolly
Maria Cardona David Jolly
Co-Chair Co-Chair
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