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Rep. Jason Chaffetz is leaving Congress on June 30, he says, because he wants to spend more time with his family. "I knew from Day One that my service there would not last forever," Chaffetz said in a letter to constituents.
Jim Bennett, the son of the late U.S. Sen. Bob Bennett, is suing to get on the ballot with his new political party in the special election to fill the seat of outgoing U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah. Bennett's lawsuit filed Wednesday says Utah state officials violated his constitutional rights when they ruled they didn't have time to verify his new, United Utah Party.
Utah lawmakers said that that they won't interfere with a special election to replace outgoing U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz this year but they believe Gov. Gary Herbert stepped outside of his constitutional role and into the Legislature's by deciding the election's timing and process. Lawmakers contend that Utah's executive branch can only set the date of an election and it's the Legislature's role to decide things like how political parties can pick their nominees and how long candidates have to file.
I think of freedom in positive, aspirational terms - such as found in President Franklin D. Roosevelt's "Four Freedoms," or in the uplifting songs of freedom sung by oppressed people everywhere. But right-wing ideologues have fabricated a negative notion of "freedoms" derived from their twisted concept of individual choice.
Just a couple of months ago, we profiled Congressman Jason Chaffetz, the Republican chairman of the powerful House Oversight Committee which was poised to dig deep on wide-ranging investigations into government mischief, waste, fraud and abuse. A few weeks later, Chaffetz abruptly resigned from Congress.
Gov. Gary Herbert and the Legislature are waging a high-power, high-stakes battle after Herbert blocked the attorney general's office from issuing a legal opinion to lawmakers on whether the governor overstepped his authority when he set the rules for the special election to replace Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz. Herbert had spurned legislators who overwhelmingly wanted the governor to call a special session so lawmakers could clarify the vague law on how to convene special elections.
Former Utah lawmaker Chris Herrod speaks during a special convention Saturday, June 17, 2017, in Provo, Utah. Herrod won the vote of about 800 state Republican delegates in a race to replace Republican U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz in Congress, advancing to an August primary election.
Rep. Trey Gowdy, who has replaced outgoing Rep. Jason Chaffetz as head of the House Oversight Committee said this week that he has confidence in former FBI Director Robert Mueller and the team he has assembled to investigate Russian involvement in the 2016 presidential race. "[He is] your quintessential straight arrow," the Tennessee Republican said during an interview with The Wall Street Journal .
About 1,000 Utah Republicans will gather for a special convention Saturday to cut down a field 12 candidates vying to replace Republican U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz and advance one candidate to an August primary election. Chaffetz announced earlier this year he's resigning at the end of June, leaving an enticing open seat for Republicans in what's considered one of the most conservative congressional districts in the country.
As he prepares to leave the U.S. House at month's end, Rep. Jason Chaffetz is no longer chairman of one of the more powerful and high-profile committees in Congress. Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., was installed Tuesday as chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, taking over a perch that Chaffetz had worked hard to obtain but is now leaving as part of his resignation from office.
In this April 4, 2017, file photo, Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., speaks during a hearing of the House Judiciary subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations, on Capitol Hill, in Washington. Gowdy has been tapped to lead the powerful House Oversight and Government Reform Committee after Chairman Jason Chaffetz leaves Congress at the end of month.
Congressman Trey Gowdy has been tapped to lead the powerful House Oversight and Government Reform Committee after Chairman Jason Chaffetz leaves Congress at the end of month. The House Republican Steering Committee recommended the South Carolina lawmaker for the post Thursday, choosing him over Oklahoman Steve Russell.
The chairman of the U.S. House oversight committee asked the FBI on Thursday to turn over more documents about former FBI director James Comey's interactions with the White House and Justice Department, including materials dating back nearly four years to the Obama administration. Meanwhile, The Washington Post reported that the FBI is investigating meetings that President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, had in December with Russian officials.
FILE PHOTO: James Comey arrives to testify before a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on ''Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation'' on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., May 3, 2017. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has declined to give the House Oversight Committee documents it had requested regarding communications between former FBI chief James Comey and President Donald Trump, the head of the panel said on Thursday.
The FBI declined to hand over memos regarding former FBI Director James Comey's communications with President Trump to the House Oversight Committee Thursday, and said it needs more time to evaluate how the special counsel investigation into possible collusion between Trump's campaign and Russia affects the committee's request for information. In a letter released Thursday, Assistant Director Gregory Brower, in the FBI's Office of Congressional Affairs, told committee chairman Rep. Jason Chaffetz the special counsel investigation means more "consultation" is needed before any documents are released.
The Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project will receive $3.1 million more in funding than officials previously expected, bringing the project's budget total from $34.8 million to $37.9 million for fiscal year 2017.
Rep. Jim Jordan doesn't usually shy away from a fight, but the conservative Ohio Republican has decided to forgo a bid for chairman of a powerful House committee. Firebrand conservative Rep. Jim Jordan to forgo bid for House Oversight chairmanship Rep. Jim Jordan doesn't usually shy away from a fight, but the conservative Ohio Republican has decided to forgo a bid for chairman of a powerful House committee.
House oversight committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz has postponed his hearing scheduled for Wednesday, the Utah congressman announced Monday, after reaching former FBI Director James Comey, whom Chaffetz wanted to testify. "Spoke with Comey.
Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn , who was fired in February for misleading Vice President Mike Pence and other officials about his conversations with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. In photo, Pence, left, and Flynn shake hands before the start of the President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe joint news conference in the East Room of the White House, in Washington, Feb. 10, 2017.
House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz says he will postpone a hearing scheduled for Wednesday after speaking with former FBI Director James Comey. Chaffetz said in a tweet Monday that Comey "wants to speak with Special Counsel prior to public testimony."