ETHICS -- GSA ADMINISTRATOR MAY HAVE USED POSITION FOR UNLAWFUL POLITICAL PURPOSES:
Earlier this month, House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) discovered that the head of the General Services Administration (GSA), Lurita Alexis Doan, may have violated federal law by using her position for "political purposes." Based on information provided to Congress by witnesses, Doan and White House deputy director of political affairs J. Scott Jennings "joined in a videoconference earlier this year with top GSA political appointees, who discussed ways to help Republican candidates." During the meeting, Doan asked how the GSA could "help 'our candidates' in the next elections" and consequently explored "how to exclude House Speaker Nancy Pelosi from an upcoming courthouse opening in San Francisco and how to include Republican Senator Mel Martinez." According to Waxman, Doan's remarks were "confirmed by 'multiple sources.'" The investigation may also "raise questions" about the role Jennings, whose name has name has also surfaced in reference to the improper dismissal of eight U.S. Attorneys. Previously, questions arose surrounding Doan's attempts to award a $20,000 no-bid GSA contract to a firm headed by Edie Fraser, an individual with whom Doan has had a "long-standing," undisclosed business relationship. As the Post reports today, Doan had taken the "unusual step of personally signing the no-bid arrangement." Doan's inappropriate, and potentially unlawful, actions came just two months after Fraser helped provide Doan the "political support" needed to secure her post at the GSA. In a statement on March 7, Doan dismissed Waxman's assertions as "scurrilous" personal attacks and said she would be "delighted to have the opportunity to set the record straight" when she appears before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday.
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