Political Quotes

“I hope everybody in this body knows that congressional oversight is a very important responsibility of all of us, and it is even a constitutional demand. We must ensure that our government truly does work for, of, and by the people. When fraud, waste, and abuse is discovered, Congress has the responsibility to the American people to make it public because transparency brings accountability. Today, we have an example of wrongdoing to discuss. It involves the former Architect of the Capitol's blatant misuse of government property. According to the Architect of the Capitol inspector general, during Brett Blanton's time as Architect, he engaged in unnecessary, very expensive, and impermissible conduct. For example, the report found unauthorized vehicle use; misrepresentation as a law enforcement officer; ethics violations; and, lastly, appropriations violations. Specifically, the inspector general found that Blanton should have driven approximately 10,438 miles using government vehicles. Instead, the inspector general said that Blanton racked up 29,291 miles. That is almost 20,000 extra miles of unauthorized benefit on the taxpayers' dime.…”