Issue Position: Holding Government Accountable
Issue Position
A straight shooter known for his zero-tolerance of government corruption, Chuck Grassley regards special interests and influential powers-that-be with a healthy dose of Midwestern skepticism.
It was Chuck Grassley who uncovered $435 hammers and $750 ash trays at the Department of Defense and brought accountability for taxpayers. Thanks to whistleblower testimony, Grassley helped lead an effort to freeze the defense budget build-up during the height of the farm crisis in the mid-1980s and spared the taxpayers billions of dollars. It also sparked a fierce advocacy for whistleblowers and transparency in government that Grassley continues to champion.
Now, Grassley is unraveling the coziness between the FDA and the pharmaceutical companies the agency is supposed to be overseeing. His efforts have led to greater transparency and accountability of the relationships between the FDA and doctors, pharmaceutical companies and medical device makers.
Grassley is well-known for his oversight efforts. Much of his credibility comes from his willingness to take on both Republican and Democrat administrations. The current Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, said to the Des Moines Register recently, "When he's wanted to open an investigation during the time I've been chairman, I just say, 'Fine.' He has that kind of credibility."
Grassley is working to beef up enforcement tools and proper surveillance of financial markets; increase accountability at the Securities and Exchange Commission; protect whistleblowers and investors; strengthen fair market practices; and, restore healthy formation of capital markets.
Grassley champions government-wide transparency in the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government. The Iowa senator works tirelessly to protect whistleblowers who know where the skeletons are hidden and to protect inspectors general who are hired to root out waste, fraud and abuse within their respective federal departments and agencies.
"Senator Grassley and his office are the most effective oversight group in the United States Congress, either House or Senate, from my perspective," Steve Kohn, executive director of the National Whistleblowers Center, told the Des Moines Register.
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