Following through on a threat, House Republicans on Tuesday, June 2 proposed cutting the State Department’s budget to protest its slow response in producing documents related to the investigation of the 2012 terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya.
The House Appropriations Committee said a budget plan for the State Department withholds nearly $700 million—or 15 percent of the agency’s operational funds—until “requirements related to proper management of the Freedom of Information Act and electronic communications are met.”
The spending plan proposed by the GOP-controlled panel provides the full amount that President Barack Obama requested for embassy security at more than 275 diplomatic facilities overseas, including facility upgrades and increased security personnel, as recommended by a federal review board appointed by the State Department to investigate the terrorist attacks.
The chairman of the Benghazi panel, Rep. Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, and other Republican lawmakers have complained that the State Department has delayed providing emails and other documents involving former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, currently running for the Democratic ticket in the 2016 presidential election, and some of her top staffers.
Gowdy and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) threatened last month to withhold some State Department spending to ensure that officials act more quickly to comply with the committee’s requests for the documents.
A spokeswoman for the Appropriations panel said the budget plan withholds funds until the State Dept. develops and implements a plan to reduce a backlog of FOIA and congressional requests.
State Department spokeswoman Alec Gerlach called the proposal “counterproductive,” and said it would further constrain resources needed to meet sharp increases in requests for documents in recent years.
“The State Dept. achieved nearly a 14 percent reduction in its appeals backlog last year,” Gerlach said, “but the agency’s FOIA caseload has more than tripled since 2008—jumping from 6,000 requests to nearly 20,000 last year. The number of congressional oversight requests has also dramatically increased.”
Gowdy added that the committee has tried a variety of ways to get the State Department to produce necessary documents; from talking to officials, letter-writing, sending subpoenas, conducting hearings and signaling threats to the department’s whole budget.
“The committee has been patient, but that patience has worn thin after months—and in some instances, years—of non-compliance with congressional requests and subpoenas,” Gowdy said. “The explanations and excuses are tired and unpersuasive. Regrettably, it sometimes takes money to get agencies’ attention.”
“The committee’s requests for documents are reasonable and relevant to the Benghazi probe,” Gowdy said, adding that the committee should have emails sent or received by top State Department officials, before questioning witnesses.
In addition, last week a federal judge ordered the State Department to release monthly batches of Hillary Clinton’s email correspondence from her time as Secretary of State. Clinton used a personal server and email address.
The State Department has said it needs more time to unveil the 55,000 pages of emails relating to the 2012 attack on the US diplomatic post in Benghazi that killed four Americans, including the US ambassador to Libya.
(With reports from The Associated Press)
