Tag: Sen. Johnson

GOP senator draws fire from all sides on Biden, Obama-era probes

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Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) is coming under fire from all sides for his investigations into the Obama administration and the Bidens.

Months into his probes, Johnson is facing increasing public pushback from Democrats, the Biden campaign and aligned outside groups who believe he is trying to undercut presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden and might inadvertently spread Russian disinformation in the process.

But he’s also taking criticism from high-profile conservatives who argue the probes are moving too slowly, while some fellow GOP senators appear worried about the appearance of the investigation just months before the election. Continue reading.

Ron Johnson signals some GOP senators concerned about his Obama-era probes

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Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) signaled Wednesday that some Republican members on his committee have voiced concerns about his investigations related to the Obama administration and Hunter Biden, the son of presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden. 

Johnson, who chairs the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, was asked during an interview with Fox News whether there are Republican senators on his panel who do not want him to subpoena former FBI Director James Comey. 

“I wasn’t going to name names. There are legitimate concerns, and, again, I was happy to try to obtain these documents on a voluntary basis,” Johnson said, asked about potential pushback from GOP members.  Continue reading.

October Surprise Part II: How Ron Johnson Unwittingly Exposed Trump’s Ukraine Plot

The Ukraine Scheme

In April 2018, Trump hired Rudy Giuliani, as his personal attorney, who in turn hired two associates, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, Russian born businessmen living in Florida, where they had contrived a variety of sketchy schemes. (One of Parnas’ firms, Fraud Guarantee, which had no identifiable customers or office, paid Giuliani a $500,000 consulting fee.) At a dinner at the Trump Hotel on April 30, Parnas reportedly told Trump that the U.S. ambassador Marie Yovanovitch was “unfriendly to the president and his interests,” that her presence stood in the way of the Giuliani operation. Trump vehemently repliedthat she should be fired.

The effort to discredit and oust Yovanovitch was launched immediately. On May 9, Parnas and Fruman got Congressman Pete Sessions, a Republican of Texas, to write a letter to the State Department demanding her dismissal, claiming she had “spoken privately and repeatedly about her disdain for the current Administration,” in exchange for a promise to raise $20,000 in campaign contributions through a pro-Trump super PAC, America First Action. Sessions appeared as “Congressman-1” in the federal indictment of Parnas and Fruman. “Parnas and Fruman committed to raising those funds for Congressman-1. Parnas met with Congressman-1 and sought Congressman-1’s assistance in causing the US Government to remove or recall the then-US Ambassador to Ukraine,” the indictment stated. Continue reading “October Surprise Part II: How Ron Johnson Unwittingly Exposed Trump’s Ukraine Plot”

Democrats Warn of Possible Foreign Disinformation Plot Targeting Congress

New York Times logoDemocrats demanded an F.B.I. briefing. They were concerned about a potential Russian-linked effort to interfere in the election by using a Senate panel to advance smears against Joe Biden, officials said.

Top congressional Democrats warned in a cryptic letter they released on Monday that a foreign power was using disinformation to try to interfere in the presidential election and the activities of Congress, and demanded a prompt briefing by the F.B.I. to warn every member of Congress.

While the letter writers, led by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, did not specify the threat, officials familiar with a classified addendum attached to it said the Democrats’ concerns touched on intelligence related to a possible Russian-backed attempt to smear the presidential campaign of former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr.

They contend that the Russian-linked information is being funneled to a committee headed by Senator Ron Johnson, the Wisconsin Republican who is investigating Mr. Biden and his son, who was once paid as a board member of a Ukrainian energy company. While neither Mr. Johnson’s inquiry nor much of the information in question is new, the Democrats’ letter is an attempt to call attention to their concern that the accusations are not only unfounded but may further Russia’s efforts to interfere again in the American presidential election. Continue reading.

October Surprise: Ron Johnson’s Journey Through ‘Multiple Untruths’ To The Fable Of Obamagate

The Lugar Center is a fairly recent addition of the sort of traditional institute in Washington that prevailed before Donald Trump. Its mission is to advance an internationalist foreign policy, “bipartisan governance,” and bring together experts to “bridge ideological divides.” It was founded by one of the last of the moderate Republicans, Richard G. Lugar, the late U.S. senator from Indiana, who once seemed to define the mainstream of a now bygone party, in the forefront of legislation to curb nuclear proliferation, but was purged in a brutal primary, losing to a Tea Party candidate who declared rape that resulted in a pregnancy was a “gift from God.”

On May 27, the Lugar Center released its first comprehensive Congressional Oversight Hearing Index, an in-depth study of the due diligence of every committee of the House of Representatives and the Senate in holding the executive branch accountable, concluding with a grade for each committee. “If a House or Senate committee is failing to meet historical standards, because of partisan bias, the inattention of the committee chair, or any other reasons, the COHI will illuminate that shortfall,” the Center stated. While many committees received high grades, the lowest grade—an “F” for failure—was awarded to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The report observed that the committee previously had been “one of the most active in the Senate,” but that its hearing schedule had “fallen dramatically.” On the Lugar Center’s carefully considered Bell Curve, the committee was at rock bottom and its chairman had flunked.

Trump’s Senators

Just a week later, on June 4, that chairman, Ron Johnson, Republican of Wisconsin, who had come to power on the Tea Party wave that carried out Richard Lugar, rammed through authorization for 35 subpoenas to fulfill President Donald Trump’s reported demand at a meeting on May 19 of Senate Republicans to get “tough” on the “Obamagate” conspiracy, a purported “Deep State” plot of the Obama administration and the intelligence community to destroy his presidency by investigating his campaign’s links to and possible collusion with the Russian interference in the 2016 election. Continue reading.

GOP chairmen stake out turf in Obama-era probes

The Hill logoGOP chairmen are carving out their turf in controversial probes stemming from the Obama administration.

Senate Republicans are set to escalate their investigations on Thursday, when two panels will vote on dueling subpoenas that have significant areas of overlap.

But Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.)—who chair the Judiciary and Homeland Security committees, respectively — say they are trying to avoid a jurisdictional fight as they prepare to do a deep dive into decisions stemming from the Obama era.  Continue reading.

Opposing Relief Bill, GOP Sen. Ron Johnson Shrugs Off COVID-19 Deaths

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) tried to downplay how bad the impact of the novel coronavirus will be, and in the process showed his science skills are not up to speed.

In an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, he suggested that the social distancing measures being taken to stop the spread of the virus are overblown.

“I’m sure the deaths are horrific … I’m not denying what a nasty disease COVID-19 can be, and how it’s obviously devastating to somewhere between 1 and 3.4 percent of the population,” Johnson told the Journal Sentinel. Continue reading.

Conservatives Worry Too Much Coronavirus Relief Will Make People Lazy

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) says he’s worried about “incentivizing people to not show up for work.”

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) is concerned that if the federal government steps in too much to help workers affected by the coronavirus crisis, it will make people lazy.

The House has passed legislation that would offer paid leave for some workers if they or their families are affected by COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

Johnson, in comments in USA Today on Monday, said he was worried about “incentivizing people to not show up for work.” Continue reading.

GOP chairman cancels Hunter Biden-related subpoena vote

The Hill logoSenate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) canceled a vote scheduled for Wednesday afternoon on a subpoena stemming from his months-long probe into Hunter Biden and Burisma Holdings.

“Out of an abundance of caution, and to allow time for you to receive additional briefings, I will postpone a vote to subpoena records and an appearance from former Blue Star Strategies consultant Andrii Telizhenko about his work for the lobbying firm,” Johnson said in a
note to committee members, a copy of which was obtained by The Hill.

Johnson told reporters that he was pulling the vote because of “some discrepancies brought up in what we had been told.” Continue reading.

Senate Republicans Suddenly Call For New Biden Probe

A top GOP senator on Sunday announced new actions in a Republican-led investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter — less than 24 hours after the elder Biden’s primary victory in South Carolina.

According to CBS News, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) sent a letter to his colleagues on Sunday, saying he wanted to subpoena witnesses related to Hunter Biden’s role at the Ukrainian energy company Burisma.

Johnson, chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, and Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-IA) initially launched the investigation in November to back up Donald Trump at the height of his impeachment inquiry. Continue reading.