Oct. 7, 2019, Fairfax, Va.–Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning issued the following statement on House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry in light of reporting from The Hill in April, months before the July 25 Trump-Zelensky call, saying that both Burisma and former Vice President Joe Biden were already actively under investigation and that they were requesting mutual legal assistance from the U.S.:

“Based on public statements to The Hill in April by then-Ukrainian Prosecutor General Lutsenko and his office that their investigation into Burisma and Joe Biden was reopened in 2018 long before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was ever elected in April 2019, then there could not have been a quid pro quo in the July 25, 2019 conversation between President Donald Trump and Zelensky. Ukraine says it began its investigation in 2018 after Biden bragged to the Council on Foreign Relations in Jan. 2018 that he had Lutsenko’s predecessor fired and wanted Attorney General Barr to look at it. While it is unclear if Biden was bragging or telling the truth, Ukraine’s government well before the Trump-Zelensky call was actively investigating both Burisma and the firing to see if there was any corrupt activity. They were asking for our help, and Zelensky reaffirmed it in his conversation with Trump, asking the U.S. for mutual legal assistance in the investigation.

“Anyone who actually wants to find out what happened in the Trump-Zelensky phone call must put it into this context of the April 2019 reporting from The Hill’s John Solomon, which quotes Lutsenko and his lead prosecutor on the case at the time, as requesting help from Attorney General Barr, and the transcript, which quotes Zelensky specifically requesting assistance. When put into this context, Adam Schiff can come up with as many coached, so-called whistleblowers as he likes, but the facts refute all of them and completely undermines any pretext for Nancy Pelosi’s impeachment. The facts are so obvious that even Sen. Mitt Romney should be able to figure them out.”

Attachments:

“It was Ukraine that reopened the Burisma-Biden probe in 2018 and sought U.S. mutual legal assistance to look at it, not the other way around,” By Robert Romano, Oct. 7, 2019 at http://dailytorch.com/2019/10/it-was-ukraine-that-reopened-the-burisma-biden-probe-in-2018-and-sought-u-s-mutual-legal-assistance-to-look-at-it-not-the-other-way-around/#comment-4643329611

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 1 or at media@limitgov.org.

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Oct. 4, 2019, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement on the latest jobs numbers:

“Almost 1 million more people are employed in the past two months in the household survey, with the unemployment rate now at a 50-year low at 3.5 percent, debunking the political and financial punditry who played Chicken Little just two months ago crying, recession, recession, recession. A total of 6.1 million jobs created since Jan. 2017 when President Trump was sworn in. With more people employed in America than at any time in history, and fewer unemployed at any time since the year 2000, it is no wonder that the Democrats are searching the globe for reasons to stop Donald Trump’s presidency, because America’s economy is strong and they can’t run on issues that affect the well-being of the average American.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 1 or at media@limitgov.org.

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Oct. 3, 2019, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement blasting House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal’s (D-Mass.) surprise medical billing rate setting proposal:

“What rational person outside of the D.C. Beltway would think it is a good idea to outsource health care rate setting to government bureaucrats and insurance lobbyists?  I guess if you have the money for a team of Gucci-shoed lobbyists to push their case to bureaucrats this might be a good idea.  If you are a bureaucrat looking for the lucrative landing spot after 30 years of civil service, this is a great idea.  But for everyone else, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal’s ‘negotiated rulemaking’ is just another step toward government-run healthcare, restricted access to medical care, a bailout for the health insurances companies that brought us Obamacare, and it will lead to doctor shortages and close healthcare facilities in rural communities.

“Let’s be clear, the best health care reform is to open markets for competition which creates lower costs naturally. Government dictated rate-setting is guaranteed to end up with those who can afford to plead their cases benefitting, those who decide the cases benefitting, and the people who have no voice being forgotten. The last thing our nation needs is more healthcare bureaucrats, yet that is exactly what this proposal creates. It would be laughable if it wasn’t so dangerous.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 1 or at media@limitgov.org.

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Oct. 3, 2019, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement praising House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) for his letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) demanding due process for President Donald Trump in any impeachment inquiry:

“House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is right to put Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the spot by demanding due process in any impeachment proceedings. By insisting that President Trump be afforded the same rights as previous recent presidents who faced impeachment inquiries, including the rights to cross-examine witnesses, McCarthy is taking the first step toward ending a narrative-driven impeachment effort based on hearsay and innuendo by forcing House Democrats to follow established procedures or admitting that the entirety of this anti-Trump effort is illegitimate and devoid of basic legal protections. The next words out of Pelosi’s mouth should be to McCarthy, ‘Yes, to all of the above,’ or, if not, then in the words of Gilda Radner’s SNL character, ‘Nevermind.’”

Attachments:

“Attorney General Barr and President Trump are constitutionally obligated to enforce the law, prevent intel abuse and root out corruption,” By Robert Romano, Oct. 3, 2019, at http://dailytorch.com/2019/10/attorney-general-barr-and-president-trump-are-constitutionally-obligated-to-enforce-the-law-prevent-intel-abuse-and-root-out-corruption/

“Why did Obama-Biden support the coup of Ukraine in 2014? In Biden’s words, to pass a trade deal.” By Robert Romano, Oct. 1, 2019 at http://dailytorch.com/2019/10/why-did-obama-biden-support-the-coup-of-ukraine-in-2014-in-bidens-words-to-pass-a-trade-deal/

“Did the CIA just try to overthrow President Trump to cover up the origins of Russiagate in Ukraine on behalf of Biden?” By Robert Romano, Sept. 27, 2019 at http://dailytorch.com/2019/09/did-the-cia-just-try-to-overthrow-president-trump-to-cover-up-the-origins-of-russiagate-in-ukraine-on-behalf-of-biden/

“Ukraine pledges cooperation on getting to the origins of Russiagate as Justice Department confirms investigation,” By Robert Romano, Sept. 26, 2019 at http://dailytorch.com/2019/09/ukraine-pledges-cooperation-on-getting-to-the-origins-of-russiagate-as-justice-department-confirms-investigation/

“Pelosi’s call for impeaching Trump on Ukraine risks war, ignores corruption there that was fueled by Obama-Biden,” By Robert Romano, Sept. 25, 2019 at http://dailytorch.com/2019/09/pelosis-call-for-impeaching-trump-on-ukraine-risks-war-ignores-corruption-there-that-was-fueled-by-obama-biden/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 1 or at media@limitgov.org.

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Oct. 2, 2019, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement in opposition to a proposal by the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board to invest federal employees’ retirement savings in Chinese companies:

“At a time when the U.S. is engaged in high-level trade talks with China and actively considering whether to institute economic sanctions against Beijing, the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board is looking at ways to in effect transfer and put at risk $50 billion of federal employees’ retirement benefits by allowing investments in China, in return for nothing. This runs contrary to current U.S. policy, and in effect sabotages the ongoing trade talks. As a former federal employee, I, like 3.3 million other Americans have a part of my retirement funds invested through the TSP, which manages over $550 billion in assets.  Let me be clear, the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board should not be in the business of offering $50 billion to nations engaged in economic warfare against the U.S.; it is both unpatriotic and fiduciarily unsound.

“If anything, not only should the Thrift Savings Plan not be considering Chinese investments at this stage, the U.S. Department of Labor’s  Employee Benefits Security Administration ought to be considering whether Chinese investments are suitable for private employee pensions, considering the lack of transparency typical with Chinese-owned and headquartered corporations. If Chinese companies and corporate bonds cannot be accurately priced and their assets placed under independent audit, the U.S. is in effect leaving it to the benevolence of the Chinese Politburo and state-run enterprises to give the right information, without any assurance that the companies even intend to remain profitable over the long-term when China’s direct economic interests have been satisfied. Retirement funds have a different responsibility under the law, and Chinese investments do not meet the unique security requirements demanded of retirement funds under the law and the Labor Department should review whether the inclusion of these insecure corporate assets meets the legal investment requirements for private sector pensions.

“It is beyond belief that federal employee retirement funds would be put at risk through opening the doors to Chinese-based investments, and the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board should reject this bad idea.  Anyone with a passing knowledge of world economic affairs would be aware of the significantly higher risk entailed for U.S. assets invested in China based upon our active reorientation of the U.S. economic relationship with Beijing. The fact this statement even has to be released is evidence that those trusted with governance of the federal Thrift Savings Plan should be replaced with competent managers who occasionally read the Wall Street Journal.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 1 or at media@limitgov.org.

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Sept. 27, 2019, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging House Democrats to go on the record on an impeachment inquiry:

“House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s choice to independently launch impeachment ‘proceedings’ violates one of the primary functions that the House majority is supposed to perform — to vote on matters of major import. It is obvious why Democrats in the House are reluctant to have a vote on their crumbling inquiry itself, as they know it is a kamikaze mission for the political futures of vulnerable members. But it is inexcusable for them to hide behind Speaker Pelosi when it comes to a matter as weighty as impeachment. Those Democrats who are too afraid to vote on an opening impeachment inquiry should be prime nominees for a new book titled ‘Profiles in Cowardice.’ If Democrats are not willing to vote, then they should just shut up.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 1 or at media@limitgov.org.

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