Secret Service Violates Congressman's Privacy

[The Rabbi]

Rep Chaffetz applied to work for the Secret Service many years ago and wasnt hired. Fine. As a Congressman he is in charge of a committee investigating the agency for their obvious gross mismanagement and incompetence. In retaliation the agency releases personal information from his file to an outside news source. No one is prosecuted, even though this is a clear violation of the Privacy Act. Even the "apologies" are fake, with lies thrown in.
Is anyone defending the Obama Administration for this kind of thing? Are we to believe the Secret Service is the only agency that uses information to punish enemies? Where is the outrage?
Secret Service official wanted to embarrass congressman

 

[JoeB131]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

But the person who leaked the info violated the rules and should be fired.

 

[NightFox]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

Your logic is flawed, Chaffetz is a congressman and congress has oversight authority over the departments of the executive, it would be like saying since Congress critter XYZ wasn't qualified for an Astronaut slot he/she can't participate in the oversight NASA, would be an absolutely unworkable situation and a prohibition like that has never even be contemplated or proposed (for good reason).

 

[PaintMyHouse]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

Your logic is flawed, Chaffetz is a congressman and congress has oversight authority over the departments of the executive, it would be like saying since Congress critter XYZ wasn't qualified for an Astronaut slot he/she can't participate in the oversight NASA, would be an absolutely unworkable situation and a prohibition like that has never even be contemplated or proposed (for good reason).

When you aren't qualified to be hired and then you gain oversight over such a thing, that is an obvious conflict of interest.

 

[JoeB131]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

Your logic is flawed, Chaffetz is a congressman and congress has oversight authority over the departments of the executive, it would be like saying since Congress critter XYZ wasn't qualified for an Astronaut slot he/she can't participate in the oversight NASA, would be an absolutely unworkable situation and a prohibition like that has never even be contemplated or proposed (for good reason).

I think his conflict of interest IS in the public interest. It shows he goes in with a bias.

I think the Secret Service probably does need some serious reforms. I'm just not sure a washout out like Chaffetz is the guy to do it.

 

[NightFox]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

Your logic is flawed, Chaffetz is a congressman and congress has oversight authority over the departments of the executive, it would be like saying since Congress critter XYZ wasn't qualified for an Astronaut slot he/she can't participate in the oversight NASA, would be an absolutely unworkable situation and a prohibition like that has never even be contemplated or proposed (for good reason).

When you aren't qualified to be hired and then you gain oversight over such a thing, that is an obvious conflict of interest.

Er..no, that's not how Congressional Oversight works, if that were the case nobody in Congress would be qualified to oversee half the departments in the Executive Branch, Congress critters are allowed to hire subject matter experts for oversight they don't have to actually be subject matter experts themselves.

 

[martybegan]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

But the person who leaked the info violated the rules and should be fired.

So you think civilian control of the military is a bad idea as well?

 

[martybegan]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

Your logic is flawed, Chaffetz is a congressman and congress has oversight authority over the departments of the executive, it would be like saying since Congress critter XYZ wasn't qualified for an Astronaut slot he/she can't participate in the oversight NASA, would be an absolutely unworkable situation and a prohibition like that has never even be contemplated or proposed (for good reason).

When you aren't qualified to be hired and then you gain oversight over such a thing, that is an obvious conflict of interest.

So i guess that means EPA should get rid of all the lawyers and policy wonks they have, and hire only scientists and engineers.

 

[PaintMyHouse]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

Your logic is flawed, Chaffetz is a congressman and congress has oversight authority over the departments of the executive, it would be like saying since Congress critter XYZ wasn't qualified for an Astronaut slot he/she can't participate in the oversight NASA, would be an absolutely unworkable situation and a prohibition like that has never even be contemplated or proposed (for good reason).

When you aren't qualified to be hired and then you gain oversight over such a thing, that is an obvious conflict of interest.

Er..no, that's not how Congressional Oversight works, if that were the case nobody in Congress would be qualified to oversee half the departments in the Executive Branch, Congress critters are allowed to hire subject matter experts for oversight they don't have to actually be subject matter experts themselves.

I know how it works, but it looks like this guy has an axe to grind. The appearance of a conflict of interest is as bad as an actual one. It's an old rule, learn it.

 

[PaintMyHouse]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

Your logic is flawed, Chaffetz is a congressman and congress has oversight authority over the departments of the executive, it would be like saying since Congress critter XYZ wasn't qualified for an Astronaut slot he/she can't participate in the oversight NASA, would be an absolutely unworkable situation and a prohibition like that has never even be contemplated or proposed (for good reason).

When you aren't qualified to be hired and then you gain oversight over such a thing, that is an obvious conflict of interest.

So i guess that means EPA should get rid of all the lawyers and policy wonks they have, and hire only scientists and engineers.

Your post has as much to do with this issue as the price of tea in China. If I wasn't qualified to work for you and then I get elected to the zoning board, when you want to open a new ______ I shouldn't have a vote. See how that works now, because I have a conflict of interest, AKA payback...

 

[Searcher44]

Rep Chaffetz applied to work for the Secret Service many years ago and wasnt hired. Fine. As a Congressman he is in charge of a committee investigating the agency for their obvious gross mismanagement and incompetence. In retaliation the agency releases personal information from his file to an outside news source. No one is prosecuted, even though this is a clear violation of the Privacy Act. Even the "apologies" are fake, with lies thrown in.
Is anyone defending the Obama Administration for this kind of thing? Are we to believe the Secret Service is the only agency that uses information to punish enemies? Where is the outrage?
Secret Service official wanted to embarrass congressman

You'll have to spread your arms real wide to gather up enough bullshit to smear Obama with this in-house Agency fuckup. This is a big part of the R's problem, so much energy wasted on Obama bashing and very little on the real problems. No wonder a recent WAPO Politics headline said; (I've given quite a few quotes from the article, you should read a few of them because people like you, as the saying goes, are part of the problem and not the solution.)

The GOP sinks deeper into chaos. Can it still function as a party?

"With no obvious replacement for Boehner in sight, “it is total confusion — a banana republic,” said Rep. Peter T. King (R-N.Y.). “Any plan, anything you anticipate — who knows what’ll happen? People are crying, they don’t have any idea how this will unfold, at all.”

"Parallel currents of rage and chaos have been roiling the 2016 presidential race, diminishing hopes that an eventual nominee can bring order and direction to the increasingly dysfunctional party."

"...government experience has become a liability for Republicans, rather than a credential. Celebrity billionaire Donald Trump, the leader in every poll, has rallied the conservative base by mocking the entire GOP establishment as weak and feckless. Many of the other candidates have followed his lead."

"Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, a presidential contender at the back of the pack, added in a statement blasted out by e-mail: “The race for Speaker of the House is not about Kevin McCarthy, it’s about burning the corrupt Washington political machine to the ground and rebuilding our country.”

"Battalions of conservative ground troops have come to Capitol Hill in the past five years with expectations that were not in line with what could actually be achieved while there is still a Democrat in the White House. Disappointed in their ability to follow through on their campaign promises to turn back President Obama’s policies, they trained their fire on their own commanders."

"For all their gains on the state and local level, Republicans are deepening the problems that have cost them the popular vote in all but one of the last six presidential elections. The divisive and exclusionary rhetoric of their 2016 contenders has hit a chord with primary voters — Trump, for instance, has made a series of insulting comments about women and immigrants — but threatens to further alienate key groups of voters in an increasingly diverse country."

"Their contempt for compromise has also undermined the Republicans’ drive to prove that they can actually govern."

“This hell-no caucus — the degree of purity that they’re looking for doesn’t exist,” said former Senate Republican leader Trent Lott (Miss.), who was also once part of the House GOP leadership."

Eric Cantor - "“It is imperative that we fight for what we believe in. But we should fight smartly. I have never heard of a football team that won by throwing only Hail Mary passes, yet that is what is being demanded of Republican leaders today,”

"In July, Cruz went so far as to call Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) a liar on the floor of the Senate. Such a breach of decorum would have been unthinkable in earlier times, but it has burnished Cruz’s image with the conservative base."

"Changes in campaign finance laws have made the parties themselves less powerful, and ideologically driven outside groups more so."

 

[martybegan]

So guy who wasn't good enough to get into the Secret Service is in charge of looking at what the Secret Service does?

That is a scandal.

Your logic is flawed, Chaffetz is a congressman and congress has oversight authority over the departments of the executive, it would be like saying since Congress critter XYZ wasn't qualified for an Astronaut slot he/she can't participate in the oversight NASA, would be an absolutely unworkable situation and a prohibition like that has never even be contemplated or proposed (for good reason).

When you aren't qualified to be hired and then you gain oversight over such a thing, that is an obvious conflict of interest.

So i guess that means EPA should get rid of all the lawyers and policy wonks they have, and hire only scientists and engineers.

Your post has as much to do with this issue as the price of tea in China. If I wasn't qualified to work for you and then I get elected to the zoning board, when you want to open a new ______ I shouldn't have a vote. See how that works now, because I have a conflict of interest, AKA payback...

Again, that means 1/2 the EPA couldn't make rules for the businesses they regulate.

 

[NightFox]

I know how it works, but it looks like this guy has an axe to grind. The appearance of a conflict of interest is as bad as an actual one. It's an old rule, learn it.

To the contrary, I don't see any evidence he had an "axe to grind" since the Secret Service has been experiencing a WHOLE lot of fuck ups lately and Chaffetz was far from being the only one that has been highly critical of them lately (both Republicans and Democrats were engaged in that criticism). In fact Chaffetz wasn't even involved in exposing the Secret Service fuck ups, most of that was exposed by the media and the rest by the Secret Services own stupidity.

I would suggest taking off the partisan blinders on this one and simply focusing on the fact that the Secret Service has YET AGAIN fucked up by trying to use confidential information that they were entrusted with to embarrass a sitting congressman. This isn't a partisan issue it's an ongoing problem with the organization which has been entrusted with (among other things) protecting the Presidents life, that's what Americans should be concerned about.

 

[PaintMyHouse]

Again, that means 1/2 the EPA couldn't make rules for the businesses they regulate.

Good...

 

[PaintMyHouse]

To the contrary...

The situation does not change the position. All that is necessary is for the "appearance of a conflict of interest". That is more than enough for moral people to walk away.

 

[LoneLaugher]

The losers who decided to leak the info will be dealt with....and rightfully so.

What more would the OP like to see happen?

 

[NightFox]

To the contrary...

The situation does not change the position. All that is necessary is for the "appearance of a conflict of interest".

Except for the fact that there is no appearance of conflict of interest except for what partisans are attempting to manufacture, this is exactly what the morons at the Secret Service were attempting to do by leaking this information, to whit: silencing a critic. It appears some people are falling for it hook, line and sinker which only encourages others in Government to do the same thing.

Try this .. imagine a big fat "D" behind Chaffetz's name and watch how rapidly any "appearance of conflict of interest" vanishes in your mind.

 

[PaintMyHouse]

Try this .. imagine a big fat "D" behind Chaffetz's name and watch how rapidly any "appearance of conflict of interest" vanishes in your mind.

It doesn't. I'm not partisan. An asshole is an asshole, a conflict is a conflict.

 

[martybegan]

The losers who decided to leak the info will be dealt with....and rightfully so.

What more would the OP like to see happen?

LOL, there is no accountability in government.

 

[hazlnut]

Rep Chaffetz applied to work for the Secret Service many years ago and wasnt hired. Fine. As a Congressman he is in charge of a committee investigating the agency for their obvious gross mismanagement and incompetence. In retaliation the agency releases personal information from his file to an outside news source. No one is prosecuted, even though this is a clear violation of the Privacy Act. Even the "apologies" are fake, with lies thrown in.
Is anyone defending the Obama Administration for this kind of thing? Are we to believe the Secret Service is the only agency that uses information to punish enemies? Where is the outrage?
Secret Service official wanted to embarrass congressman

Chaffetz is such a loser - couldn't make the cut and now he's going to cry about it.

What a bitch.