May 17, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging President Donald Trump to withdraw the nomination of Gina Haspel to head the Central Intelligence Agency after questions emerged over her potential role in spying on the Trump campaign in 2016:

“The Senate should stop any and all action on the Gina Haspel CIA nomination given new information about her potential culpability in igniting a massive counterintelligence investigation during the presidential campaign. Senator Rand Paul is asking the right question, which is, what did Gina Haspel know about the anti-Trump spying scandal, and when did she know it? Given her position as CIA London Station Chief at the very time this London-based operation was underway, it is not credible that she was unaware of this major abuse of power. Given her sworn statement that she would disobey legally given orders that she thought were wrong, it is clear that if she knew about the investigation, she embraced it. Either she lied to Congress, or she is at the heart of the greatest abuse of power by the executive branch that our nation has ever seen. Neither is acceptable, and President Trump should withdraw Haspel’s nomination.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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May 17, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement in response to House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif.) statement that “We cannot disrupt ourselves. Intensity levels are still not there, and discharge petitions release the power of the floor that the American people gave us the responsibly to hold. When you release that power the majority goes to Nancy. If you want to depress intensity this is number one way to do it”:

“House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s actions need to match his words when it comes to the illegal immigration amnesty discharge petition, and he needs to cut off all political support for any Republican who remains on the petition, including fellow California Rep. Jeff Denham. McCarthy claims he wants to be Speaker of the House but if he cannot corral his closest allies in the House conference on an issue that is an existential threat to the Republican majority by his own admission, then he is clearly not up to the task. McCarthy’s actions will tell whether he has the mettle to be Speaker of the House or even Minority Leader.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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May 16, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging the Senate to immediately confirm Jeffrey Clark, nominee for Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division, Brian Benczkowski, nominee for Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division, Eric Dreiband, nominee for Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division and Joseph Hunt, nominee for Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division:

“We are nearly 16 months into the Trump administration and it is inexcusable that the Senate cannot find the time to confirm qualified nominees to be Assistant Attorneys General for the criminal, civil rights and natural resources divisions. Right now, the politicized career holdovers from Obama’s corrupt Justice Department are acting without adult supervision. The Senate shares a great deal of the blame for this lapse and is helping to create an unaccountable environment at the Justice Department. Time’s up. It’s time to get the Trump administration started by confirming his very well-qualified nominees to direct these vital offices at the Justice Department.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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May 15, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement in opposition to the nominee to head up the $1.9 trillion Ginnie Mae, Michael Bright:

“The announcement that Michael Bright will be nominated to lead Ginnie Mae is a slap in the face to veterans with lower credit scores who have seen their access to VA home loans attacked through his agency policies appeasing China. Bright stated in an industry publication after speaking with foreign investors, ‘The Chinese were very upset with our prepayment speeds.’ America does not need Michael Bright squeezing veterans to make his Chinese banking friends happy. Bright’s nomination to Ginnie Mae is a bad, bad choice and should be withdrawn.”

Attachments:

“China is flexing its economic muscle against a U.S. government housing agency, and veterans are paying the price,” By Printus LeBlanc, May 15, 2018 at http://dailytorch.com/2018/05/china-is-flexing-its-economic-muscle-against-a-u-s-government-housing-agency-and-veterans-are-paying-the-price/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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May 9, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement urging President Donald Trump to withdraw the nomination of Gina Haspel for CIA Director after she testified that “I support the higher moral standard this country has decided to hold itself to. I would never, ever take CIA back to an interrogation program. First of all, CIA follows the law… My moral compass is strong, I would not allow CIA to undertake activity that I thought was immoral, even if it was technically legal. I absolutely would not permit it”:

“The CIA Director has the right to resign, when given a direct, lawful order by the elected President of the United States that she morally disagrees with, but she doesn’t have the right to disobey said order. This new concept that the FBI and intelligence community somehow has a higher moral compass than the elected President is proven wrong every day as we continue to learn more and more about their domestic spying and attempts to influence the U.S. presidential election.  Now, nominee Haspel has testified under oath that she will disobey lawful orders.

“While she may have honorably served under now Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Haspel’s testimony putting her judgment about legal orders above that of the Commander and Chief makes her unfit to serve as CIA Director, and President Trump should do the nation a service and withdraw her, already controversial nomination from further consideration.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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May 8, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement in response to a lawsuit filed against the Department of Housing and Urban Development for suspending the 2015 Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing regulation until 2024:

“The lawsuit against the Department of Housing and Urban Development for suspending the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule until 2024 is irrelevant. Under the omnibus spending bill, currently HUD is prohibited from ordering any changes to zoning under the 2015 Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing regulation. HUD Secretary Ben Carson’s suspension of the rule until 2024 may have taken place prior to this Congressional prohibition, but the lawsuit is practically moot since it would be now be illegal for Carson to implement AFFH as currently written. In its present iteration, the HUD rule is illegal, since it still calls for changes to zoning. HUD should move for immediate dismissal, as it is clear that Congress has preempted whatever vision of AFFH the Obama administration implemented.”

Attachments:

“Congress succeeds in gutting Obama HUD racial and income zoning rule in omnibus,” By Robert Romano, March 27, 2018 at http://dailytorch.com/2018/03/congress-succeeds-in-gutting-obama-hud-racial-and-income-zoning-rule-in-omnibus/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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May 8, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement praising President Donald Trump for leaving the Iran nuclear deal:

“Under the Constitution and federal law, President Donald Trump can leave bad foreign agreements at his discretion and institute sanctions against countries hostile to U.S. interests, including Iran. Today, President Trump has put America first by ending the Iran nuclear deal and reinstituting sanctions on Tehran after it was revealed that Iran lied when it entered into the deal in the first place about the extent of its nuclear weapons program.

“In order for the U.S. to be taken seriously elsewhere including on the Korean peninsula, there has to be penalties for not dealing honestly with the U.S. To have stayed in the Iran nuclear deal would have told North Korea that it is okay to lie to the U.S. about the extent of its own program putting regional and international security at risk.

“The Iran nuclear deal was always a fiction, and now President Trump is protecting U.S. national security interests and holding Iran accountable for its Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty obligations.

“For those who now complain about the President’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, it should be noted that the previous administration failed to put the deal before the Senate for treaty ratification. The reason the Obama team made this choice is because the deal would have never passed public scrutiny and President Trump’s withdrawal is an affirmation that constitutional processes should be followed to ensure U.S. interests are upheld.”

Attachments:

“Netanyahu briefing proving Iran nuke program exists leaves Trump little choice but to leave Iran nuke deal,” By Robert Romano, May 8, 2018 at http://dailytorch.com/2018/05/netanyahu-briefing-proving-iran-nuke-program-exists-leaves-trump-little-choice-but-to-leave-iran-nuke-deal/

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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May 7, 2018, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement in response to revelations by the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence including testimony by former FBI Director James Comey and former Deputy Director Andrew McCabe that the FBI agents who interviewed former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn in Jan. 2017 did not think he had lied about his conversation with Russian Ambassador Sergei Kisylak in Dec. 2016:

“The prosecution of former National Security Advisor reflects the Orwellian justice of the Mueller investigation where both James Comey and Andrew McCabe testified to Congress that Flynn did not lie to the FBI, and yet Flynn was forced to plead guilty to lying to investigators because he could no longer afford to defend himself financially.

“Two immediate actions should occur: First, Flynn should withdraw his coerced guilty plea and all charges against him should be dropped. Second, Congress is responsible for Mueller’s unending taxpayer-funded pocketbook used to overwhelm even well-heeled individuals and members can and should immediately vote to cut that funding from the Mueller probe and demand a final report be submitted to the Department of Justice. Failure by Congress to act would be a surrender of their duty to ensure the basic American principle of every deserving equal justice under the law. Mueller and the FBI’s rogue prosecutions will either go down as a stain on nation’s judicial system or it could very well be the end of the concept of innocent until proven guilty.”

Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts.

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