House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan has opened yet a new investigation on political opponents. Some of the current ones include an alleged censorship case involving Youtube and the FBI and helping push the GOP-led theory of noncitizen voting in his state of Ohio, as well as pushing a Japanese company take down an initiative which he claimed would result in the sabotaging of conservative media outlets
Jordan has now issued a subpoena to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), requesting information on federal spending related to housing assistance for undocumented immigrants.
This action follows months of unsuccessful attempts by the committee to obtain detailed records from the HHS Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) concerning the agency's cooperation with other federal entities, including the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and faith-based organizations like Church World Service.
The committee, which has oversight responsibilities over ORR, first sought information in July about how HHS allocates taxpayer funds for housing assistance and referrals to undocumented immigrants, refugees, and parolees within the U.S. Jordan noted that while ORR provided seven pages of documents on October 4, the records were "lacking substance" and insufficient for comprehensive oversight.
According to the Republican congressman from Ohio, this lack of cooperation hinders the committee's ability to conduct its constitutional oversight obligations effectively. In a letter accompanying the subpoena he explained:
"Pursuant to the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee has jurisdiction to conduct oversight of matters concerning federal immigration law to inform potential legislative reforms. These potential legislative reforms could include, among other proposals, limiting funding of housing assistance for aliens and ensuring that U.S. taxpayer dollars are used to benefit the American people, many of whom are struggling to buy homes and pay rent"
The subpoena, directed to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, requires that the agency provide all relevant documents by October 30. This includes communications related to housing assistance for refugees, parolees, and other non-citizens shared between ORR and other federal departments or non-profit partners like Church World Service.
This investigation is part of a broader effort by the Republican-led House to scrutinize the Biden administration's handling of immigration and border policies. Also on Thursday, the Judiciary Committee held a hearing to discuss the impacts of the Biden-Harris administration border policies in Wisconsin. The hearing did not include a single Democrat from the local, state or federal level.
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