Jeffries signals plans to boot Johnson's "frightening" House Intel picks
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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Photo: Kent Nishimura/Getty Images.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) on Tuesday indicated he may block Reps. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) and Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) from serving on the House Intelligence Committee if he becomes speaker.
Why it matters: Johnson's appointment of the two conservative hardliners has met with bipartisan pushback over concerns about their respective scandals.
- Jackson, the former personal physician to the president, was accused in a 2021 watchdog report of drinking and taking sleeping medications on the job and of harassing staff.
- Perry had his phone seized by the FBI as part of the agency's probe into efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
- Republican members met with Johnson last week to voice their concerns, though Johnson has not signaled any plans to reverse course.
What he's saying: In an interview on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Jeffries said "unfortunately, pursuant to the rules of the House of Representatives, the speaker ... has the unilateral authority to make appointments" to the Intelligence Committee.
- "Those appointments are frightening in the context of the irresponsible nature of the behavior of those two individuals, particularly Representative Perry," Jeffries said.
In a sign of his plans should he become speaker in 2025, Jeffries added: "If the American people give us the opportunity to govern with the gavels in November, we can assure you that a different decision would be made."
- Spokespeople for Johnson, Perry and Jackson did not immediately provide comment for this story.
Flashback: Upon taking office last January, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) removed Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) from the House Intelligence Committee.
- At issue were Swalwell's association with a Chinese spy and Schiff's promotion of the Steele dossier.
- Jeffries had renominated both lawmakers for the panel the day earlier, saying McCarthy's vow not to seat them "runs counter to the serious and sober mission'" of the panel.
State of play: Johnson's decision to appoint Perry and Jackson, both loyal allies of former President Trump, has spawned blowback from both Democrats and Republicans on the panel.
- Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) sent Johnson a letter last week urging him to pull the appointments.
Zoom in: Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio), the panel's chair, said in a CBS "Face the Nation" interview on Sunday that he asked the intelligence community "whether or not there was an issue" with the appointed representatives.
- "They indicated that there was not an ongoing or continuing issue, or even a current issue that we needed to address," he said.
- Turner said he and Johnson met with Perry and "assurances have been made," and that the speaker said he will "monitor the situation – if there's any indication of anything improper happening, that he will intervene."
