Full Committee Organizational Meeting of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

Committee Organizing for 119th CongressHouse Oversight and Government Reform · January 14, 2025 · 119th Congress
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held its organizational meeting to adopt committee rules for the 119th Congress, including creation of new subcommittees such as one on "Delivering on Government Efficiency" (DOGE). Begins at ▶ 0:09:28
Transcript
Highlights

Title

House Oversight Committee adopts rules for the 119th Congress

Purpose

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held its organizational meeting to adopt committee rules for the 119th Congress, including creation of new subcommittees such as one on "Delivering on Government Efficiency" (DOGE). Chairman James Comer and Ranking Member Gerry Connolly opened with remarks on working relationships and committee priorities, after which members debated and voted on five Democratic amendments to the rules package before adopting the final rules. Begins at▶ 0:09:28

Who spoke

• Chairman James Comer (R-KY)▶ 0:09:28: Opened the meeting, welcomed new Republican members Eli Crane, Brian Jack, John Maguire, and Brandon Gill▶ 0:10:59, and outlined changes to the rules including new subcommittee jurisdictions (rule 6) and electronic voting language (rule 5)▶ 0:17:32; opposed all five Democratic amendments but pledged to consult with the ranking member on subpoenas▶ 0:24:29.

• Ranking Member Gerry Connolly (D-VA)▶ 0:12:00: Welcomed new Democratic members and stressed the committee's accountability mandate▶ 0:12:30; offered an amendment requiring 24-hour advance notice and a draft copy to the ranking member before issuing subpoenas, modeled on Judiciary Committee rules▶ 0:19:57.

• Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA)▶ 0:24:59: Argued Connolly's subpoena amendment was "de minimis," requiring only notice, not a vote, unlike Comer's earlier version▶ 0:25:30.

• Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA)▶ 1:10:18: Cross-examined witnesses on Musk/SpaceX conflicts▶ 1:01:22; later offered an amendment barring the committee from advancing legislation that enriches Donald Trump or his businesses, citing $7.8 million in documented foreign payments to Trump during his first term and Jared Kushner's $2 billion Saudi investment▶ 2:11:18▶ 2:13:19.

• Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-MD)▶ 0:29:32: Offered an amendment to merge the Government Operations subcommittee with the new DOGE subcommittee, citing his work with Chairman Sessions on improper payments▶ 0:31:34.

• Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA)▶ 0:38:39: Said the country is $36 trillion in debt and defended her chairmanship of the new DOGE subcommittee▶ 0:39:09; later criticized the civil rights subcommittee amendment while raising abortion and transgender-athlete issues▶ 3:04:32.

• Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL)▶ 0:40:09: Argued having duplicate subcommittees is inefficient, calling DOGE "a meme subcommittee," and supported merging them▶ 0:40:40.

• Rep. Dave Min (D-CA)▶ 0:41:10: Called DOGE "the original meme coin" and opposed it as a political stunt▶ 0:41:10; later argued recusal rules for financial conflicts are standard and not unconstitutional▶ 1:08:29.

• Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ)▶ 0:41:41: Opposed the merger amendment, calling Democratic criticism of DOGE "dripping with TDS" and citing $1.7 trillion in improper payments over three years▶ 0:42:11.

• Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-NM)▶ 0:43:12: Questioned the sincerity of DOGE's mission▶ 0:43:12; offered an amendment barring people with financial conflicts of interest from advising the committee, citing Elon Musk/SpaceX contracts reported at nearly $20 billion▶ 1:01:22▶ 0:59:51.

• Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC)▶ 0:44:43: Defended the DOGE subcommittee and Greene's chairwomanship, denied Republicans have proposed cutting Social Security▶ 0:45:44, and criticized transgender participation in women's spaces▶ 2:31:29.

• Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX)▶ 0:47:45: Questioned why a new subcommittee was needed when Republicans already controlled Oversight▶ 0:48:15; later offered an amendment to reinstate the Civil Rights and Civil Liberties subcommittee, invoking Lucy Baines Johnson and the 1964/1965 civil rights and voting rights acts▶ 2:25:56.

• Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ)▶ 0:51:17: Supported the DOGE subcommittee, citing $12 trillion in emergency spending since the Clinton administration without receipts▶ 0:51:47.

• Rep. Michael Cloud (R-TX)▶ 0:52:48: Supported DOGE, citing roughly $50 billion in added annual interest costs from debt▶ 0:54:20.

• Rep. Pat Fallon (R-TX)▶ 0:54:57: Said Republicans won five million more votes than Democrats in November▶ 0:55:20 and cited over $800 billion spent on debt interest▶ 0:55:50.

• Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX)▶ 1:22:53: Called Democratic concern over ethics hypocritical given Hunter Biden's pardon▶ 2:22:54.

• Rep. John Maguire (R-VA)▶ 2:15:51: Defended Trump's record, saying he left office with less personal wealth▶ 2:15:51.

• Rep. Brian Jack (R-GA)▶ 2:16:52: Noted Trump did not take a presidential salary▶ 2:16:52.

• Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA)▶ 2:07:45: Warned of "conflict" ahead over federal spending, citing $36 trillion in debt▶ 2:08:15; later described his new Federal Law Enforcement subcommittee's plans to scrutinize agency leadership▶ 2:59:30.

• A committee clerk▶ 0:19:57: Distributed and read amendments and conducted roll call votes throughout the meeting▶ 2:44:28.

Key moments

• Connolly's subpoena-notice amendment failed 16–24 on an electronic vote after Comer noted Connolly himself had voted against a similar GOP amendment in the 117th Congress▶ 0:22:28▶ 3:21:54.

• Ivey's amendment to merge the Government Operations and DOGE subcommittees failed 16–25; Comer argued subcommittee restructuring adds no cost since committee staff and budget stay the same▶ 0:50:47▶ 3:23:34.

• Stansbury's conflict-of-interest amendment, aimed at barring people like Elon Musk from advising the committee while holding federal contracts, failed 16–25; she cited SpaceX's roughly $20 billion in NASA contracts▶ 1:01:22▶ 3:24:48.

• Garcia's amendment to bar the committee from advancing legislation enriching Trump failed 16–25; he cited documented payments from over 20 foreign countries and $7.8 million directly to Trump during his first term▶ 2:11:48▶ 2:12:19▶ 3:25:19.

• Crockett's amendment to reinstate the Civil Rights and Civil Liberties subcommittee failed 16–25 after a heated exchange with Mace over transgender rights in women's spaces, during which Crockett said "we can take it outside," prompting a point of order over inciting violence that Comer ultimately ruled was not a violation▶ 2:35:31▶ 2:36:02▶ 2:41:26▶ 3:26:50.

• A motion by Rep. Byron Donalds to limit further debate to 15 minutes passed 23–16 by roll call▶ 2:49:12▶ 2:55:27.

• The full committee rules package for the 119th Congress was adopted 25–16, and the meeting was ordered favorably reported▶ 3:27:32.

• Rep. Higgins announced he will chair a new Federal Law Enforcement subcommittee focused on scrutinizing agency leadership, saying rank-and-file officers are "celebrating" the change▶ 2:59:30▶ 3:01:31.

Metadata

CommitteeHouse Oversight and Government Reform
Chamber / CongressHouse · 119th Congress
DateJanuary 14, 2025
TypeMeeting
Witnesses
(none listed in event metadata)
Videoyoutube
Transcript293 caption blocks · 21,825 words · 3:29:18 runtime
EventCongress.gov 117774