OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Nomination of Daniel Habib Jorjani

Floor Speech

By: Ron Wyden
By: Ron Wyden
Date: July 30, 2019
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Government Operations

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Mr. WYDEN. Madam President, today I wish to give notice of my intent to object to any unanimous consent agreement regarding Senate Executive Calendar No. 367, the nomination of Daniel Jorjani to be Solicitor at the Department of the Interior.

Recently released documents reveal that, during Mr. Jorjani's confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, he knowingly gave misleading and untruthful testimony about the Department's Freedom of Information Act--FOIA-- policy.

Department officials appear to have created a policy with regard to the Freedom of Information Act allowing political appointees to delay and thwart the release of information to the public. Worse still, when I asked Mr. Jorjani about this policy, he told me it didn't exist.

Attempts by political appointees at the Department to delay, stonewall, and otherwise inhibit public and congressional oversight are completely unacceptable. This sort of rank political interference with government accountability runs contrary to the very basis of our form of government.

On February 28, 2019, the Department issued an updated version of its formal ``Awareness Review'' policy, which outlines the Department's review process for FOIA document productions. However, based on documents obtained through multiple FOIA requests, it appears the Department has a supplemental process for document productions that has not previously been made public.

Mr. Jorjani appeared before the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on May 2, 2019, for his confirmation hearing to serve as the Department's Solicitor. During Mr. Jorjani's hearing and in written testimony he provided the Committee shortly thereafter, he told me this supplemental awareness review process did not exist.

Currently, the Department's inspector general is conducting a review of Interior's FOIA policies. In addition, I have asked the U.S. Department of Justice to look into whether Mr. Jorjani perjured himself before the committee.

I cannot condone the movement of Mr. Jorjani's nomination. Therefore, I will object to any unanimous consent agreement to consider Mr. Jorjani's nomination.

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