Comer Probes Democrats’ Influence and Politization of NARA
WASHINGTON—Today, House Committee on Oversight and Reform Ranking Member James Comer (R-Ky.) wrote to the Acting Archivist of the United States, Debra Steidel Wall, raising concerns about Oversight Committee Democrats’ influence and coordination with the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to investigate the Trump Administration’s handling of presidential records. Oversight Committee Democrats pressured NARA to pursue former President Trump while he was in office despite NARA finding no wrongdoing, and NARA has held at least one secret briefing with Democrats without inviting Republicans. Ranking Member Comer is calling on Acting Archivist Steidel Wall to provide documents, communications, and information to determine if Democrats have been influencing the agency.
“Committee on Oversight and Reform Republicans are investigating the National Archives and Records Administration’s (NARA) role in the FBI raid of former President Donald J. Trump’s home at Mar-a-Lago. According to documents on file with the Committee, in February 2022, NARA requested a meeting with Committee Democrats on this issue and failed to include Committee Republicans. This raises concerns that NARA has been treating the Trump Administration’s handling of presidential records as a partisan political issue. Even prior to President Trump leaving the White House, Committee Democrats engaged NARA to investigate the matter of presidential records despite no evidence the Administration did anything wrong. This new information about NARA meeting with Committee Democrats and excluding Committee Republicans raises even more questions about the degree to which NARA has been motivated by Committee Democrats’ transparent aim to implicate the former president in wrongdoing. As such, Committee Republicans request information about the potential politicization of NARA and the extent of Democrats’ influence at the agency,” wrote Ranking Member Comer.
On December 21, 2020—during the Trump Administration—Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) wrote to NARA requesting information about the Trump Administration’s handling of presidential records. NARA did not send an employee to assist the Trump White House as it has done with previous administrations. On January 5, 2021, NARA responded, noting that the Trump Administration had requested review of how documents should be handled, NARA had been “closely coordinating with the White House throughout the Trump Administration,” and NARA previously provided administrations confidential guidance to access records. While NARA’s response mentions no wrongdoing by the Trump Administration, Democrats used this issue as a basis to continue investigating President Trump well after his term ended.
“Committee Republicans are concerned NARA has become overly influenced by Committee Democrats’ focus on the former president. Committee Democrats’ investigating of former President Trump has led NARA to produce everything from an accounting of books, ties, and other gifts to the President to the proper memorialization of Instagram posts. It is particularly concerning that in February 2022, NARA officials requested Committee Democrat staff meet with NARA officials—including apparently General Counsel Gary Stern—without invitation to Committee Republicans about this ongoing matter. E-mail documentation shows the February 28, 2022, meeting was to discuss ‘the letter,’ which presumably meant either the February 9, 2022, letter from Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney to NARA or the agency’s February 18, 2022, letter to the Chairwoman. Both letters involved the former president’s handling of presidential records, yet NARA chose to make the meeting partisan by failing to include Committee Republicans. This raises serious questions about how often NARA provided information to Committee Democrats about this issue without including Committee Republicans,” continued Ranking Member Comer. “Committee Republicans must determine the extent, if any, to which this communication was affected by Committee Democrats’ desire for NARA to pursue the former president.”
The letter to Acting Archivist Steidel Wall can be found here.