Matt Gaetz: “The FBI wants a massive new complex for their Washington, D.C., area activities. They want to spend more than $300…”

“The FBI wants a massive new complex for their Washington, D.C., area activities. They want to spend more than $300 million on that complex. Though the FBI has an employee base that is about 2.3 percent of the United States military, Mr. Chairman, they are literally asking for something that is larger than the Pentagon for the FBI. My amendment would disallow any planning, spending, or distribution of funds for that purpose. I don't believe that the FBI deserves a massive new headquarters or Washington field office. The activities inside of Washington, the Greater Washington metro area, have really driven a lot of the investigative work we have done. It is not bad folks from the FBI out of some field office in middle America or elsewhere in the country. It is the Washington, D.C.-based activities that have pressured other field offices for no good law enforcement reason. It is the D.C.-based entities that have suppressed credible investigative leads into criminal conduct over the objections of other bureaus and offices, and they have initiated investigations into American citizens merely for engaging in constitutionally protected speech. They have attempted to entrap Members of the United States Senate by holding false classified briefings. That is the testimony we got from Senator Grassley and Senator Johnson.…”