Press Releases

RANKING MEMBER PLASKETT REFLECTS ON DEMOCRATS’ IMPACT ON SELECT COMMITTEE ON WEAPONIZATION OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

For Immediate Release                             Contact: Tionee Scotland
December 30, 2024                                                    202-808-6129

Press Release

RANKING MEMBER PLASKETT REFLECTS ON DEMOCRATS’ IMPACT ON SELECT COMMITTEE ON WEAPONIZATION OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

Washington, D.C. – Ranking Member Plaskett released the following statement on the Select Subcommittee on Weaponization of the Federal Government:

“As we end the 118th Congress and look toward the next, I am thankful that I was entrusted with the opportunity to serve our country and protect the integrity and soundness of our democracy as the Ranking Member of the Select Subcommittee on Weaponization of the Federal Government during this session. The Republican's attempt to derail the federal government’s obligation to investigate and conduct due process on actions, organizations and individuals that threaten our republic and create an anti-democratic environment was met with strong resistance by myself and my Democratic colleagues on the subcommittee. We used the hearings to push our message of the dangers of Project 2025, along with Trump’s plans to weaponize the federal government. We brought witnesses that were not beholden to the narrative laid out by the Republicans and we were able to drive home the critical need to fight against the threat of fascism and authoritarianism in our country.  Because our Republican colleagues on the Committee lost the ability to follow the rules, it was our strategy to use that leverage to counter in very different ways than would normally be done in committees. 

“I and my fellow Democratic colleagues—known as the Truth Squad—lifted up a standard of truth and resistance to the dangerous, divisive, and poisonous rhetoric espoused by our Republican counterparts on the committee. We held the line strategically and prevented much of the dangerous work Republicans on the committee intended to accomplish because of the foresight displayed by Leader Jeffries in putting this stellar group of Democratic Members together.

“As we prepare to enter the 119th session of Congress, I remain committed to doing the difficult, but necessary work of the American people.  I am grateful for the ex-officio support and guidance of Representative Jerry Nadler (NY-12) who has steered the ship so well on the Judiciary Committee.  I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to Leader Hakeem Jeffries for his continued confidence in me. 

“I believe our work on the Select Committee is a great example for my Democrat colleagues in the 119th Congress.  The Weaponization Committee was formed and heralded with much fanfare by the Republicans at the beginning of the 118th.  It is the incredible team put together by Hakeem Jeffries, our work as a cohesive group, and the confidence my colleagues placed in me to create a very unconventional strategy to counteract Chair Jordan’s narrative that made the committee a ‘nothing burger” for the GOP.

“It was an honor.”

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