Comer Probes John Kerry’s Secret Negotiations as Special Presidential Envoy for Climate

Renews request for documents and information to understand role and provide necessary transparency over the SPEC and its activities

WASHINGTON — House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) is pressing Special Presidential Envoy for Climate (SPEC) John Kerry for documents and information related to his role within the Biden Administration. Despite not being confirmed by the Senate, Kerry is negotiating with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on deals that undermine the United States’ interests. Chairman Comer is calling on Kerry to provide all documents and information to understand his office’s activities, spending, and staffing.   

“The Committee on Oversight and Accountability is investigating your role in the Biden Administration and the nature of your negotiations with the Chinese Communist Party. In the 117th Congress, we requested information from you regarding your position as special presidential envoy for climate (SPEC)—a cabinet-level position that does not require Senate confirmation despite your apparent ability to bind the United States to international agreements —and SPEC employees’ ties to outside organizations. To date, you have failed to respond to any of our requests. Yet, you continue to engage in activities that could undermine our economic health, skirt congressional authority, and threaten foreign policy under the guise of climate advocacy. The Committee requests documents and information to understand your role and provide necessary transparency over the SPEC and its activities,” wrote Chairman Comer.

Last Congress, then-Ranking Member Comer pressed for information on John Kerry’s role in the Biden Administration in June 2021 and October 2022. The Biden Administration refused to respond to these requests even as Kerry continues to craft secret agreements with foreign governments. In May 2022, Kerry told the Associated Press that he was in negotiations with the CCP to form a group to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He has also downplayed the CCP’s human rights violations and its antagonism against the U.S. while promoting climate negotiations that the CCP does not even appear interested in entering. 

“As a member of the President’s cabinet, you should be representing the United States’ interests.  Your statements, however, consistently show disregard for American national security and taxpayer dollars,” continued Chairman Comer. “Your office continues to ignore requests for information. We are left with an insufficient understanding of your office’s activities, spending, and staffing,”

Read the letter to John Kerry here.