Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC)
Updated: During a U.S. House hearing on the closure of national parks and monuments during the government shutdown, Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) illustrated the Obama Administration’s blatant disregard for the Rule of Law in pursuit of political advantage.
Gowdy questioned the director of the National Park Service for treating “pot-smoking” demonstrators in the Occupy movement with more respect than the nation’s war veterans.
Gowdy demanded that National Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis cite the federal regulation that prompted his department to put up barricades to keep veterans out of war memorials on the first day of the shutdown. He also pointed out that the Park Service failed to issue a single citation when Occupiers camped out at D.C.’s McPherson Square for 100 days — 100 days in “non-compliance” with federal regulations.
“That was two years ago,” Jarvis explained.
Gowdy countered, “Well, I can cite you the regulation that you did not follow two years ago. Can you cite me the regulation that required you to erect barricades from accessing a monument that they built?”
“On the very first day of the closure, I implemented a closure order for all 401 national parks in compliance with the Anti-Deficiency Act,” Jarvis replied. “And immediately, that day, also included, as a part of that order, that First Amendment activities would be permitted on the National Mall,” Jarvis weakly asserted in defense of an executive order issued by the White House.
Gowdy snapped sarcastically: “Do you consider it First Amendment activity to walk to a monument that you helped build, or is it only just smoking pot at McPherson Square?”
“We are content-neutral on First Amendment on the National Mall,” Jarvis pleaded.
“That wasn’t my question,” Gowdy declared. “Do you consider it to be an exercise of your First Amendment rights to walk to a monument that you helped build?”
Jarvis asserted veterans would have been permitted to enter the war memorials if they “declared” they were exercising their First Amendment rights.
“Who were they to declare it to? A barricade?” Gowdy replied. “Mr. Chairman, I want the record to reflect that no statute or code of the federal regulation was cited to justify the erection of barricades.”
Update: Ed Klein, former foreign editor of Newsweek and editor-in-chief of the New York Times Magazine, is asserting the White House intentionally and deliberately planned to cause as much pain and havoc across the country as possible during this so-called shutdown.
Barack Obama with Valerie Jarrett
It is a ploy to win votes, concluded Klein. He told the New York Post that President Obama’s closest adviser, Valerie Jarrett, developed a strategy to force a showdown with Republicans over Obamcare.
Jarrett recommended shutting down government because, Klein said, she believed voters would pin the blame on Republicans.
And that would give Democrats the opportunity to win control of the House of Representatives in the 2014 midterm elections.
Klien said he interviewed more than a half dozen White House and former presidential advisers about the shutdown plan.
He called Jarret the “architect” of the strategy of refusing to negotiate with Republicans over Obamacare.
“She convinced the president that a government shutdown and default offered a great opportunity to demonize the Republicans and help the Democrats win back a majority in the House of Representatives in 2014,” he explained.
“Valerie also came with the idea of using the words ‘hostage,’ and ‘ransom’ and ‘terrorists’ against the Republicans,” Klein maintained.