▶ 0:07:02This hearing of the subcommittee on delivering on government efficiency will come to order. Welcome everyone. Without objection, the chair may declare a recess at any time. I recognize myself for the purpose of making an opening statement. Good morning and welcome to another Doge subcommittee hearing where we will highlight more abuses of your tax dollars.
▶ 0:07:24The left has funneled hundreds of billions of federal tax dollars through non-governmental organizations, NOS, to push destructive policies and line the pockets of their friends and allies. This NGO scheme demonstrates massive waste and abuse of federal resources. Today's hearing will bring transparency to for the American people.
▶ 0:07:47We will expose the corrupt ties that bind left-wing NOS, Democrat-elected officials, Democrat political appointees, and the deep state bureaucrats who write grants and contracts. Corrupt backdoor dealmaking has exploited the taxpayer purse to achieve policy ends opposed by the very Americans forced to fund them.
▶ 0:08:10Whether by pushing green energy energy scams or facilitating the resettlement of millions of illegal aliens into American towns and cities, the alliance between big government and allied NOS's has been highly effective and has been flying under the public's radar for far too long. But today, we are going to draw back the curtain. The scheme works in a cycle as shown here.
▶ 0:08:41Democrat administration officials work with leftist NOS to implement programs in a manner that ensures those NOS's receive massive grants and contracts. The leaders of those recipient groups then turn around and donate to Democrat political campaigns. This intricate web of connections is how elected and appointed Democrat officials and allied NOS's work together.
▶ 0:09:09Federal agencies fund the NOS's and the NOS's shape the agency's behavior. It can be hard to tell to tell where the government ends and the NGO begins. The nonprofits essentially serve as an arm of the government. To put it another way, if the permanent bureaucracy is the de facto fourth branch of the government, then these leftist NOS's are the fifth.
▶ 0:09:36Our witnesses today will describe how the left has funneled hundreds of billions of US tax dollars through NOS's, discuss the destructive policies this has enabled, and detail the damage done to our country. So-called green energy NOS are among the worst offenders. They have used federal dollars to destabilize the US power grid and energy dominance while raising energy costs on Americans.
▶ 0:10:03The Biden EPA steered billions in US tax dollars to leftist climate nos via a 20 billion slush fund known as the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, GGRF. like-minded nonprofits were enlisted to implement President Biden's Green New Deal scam.
▶ 0:10:23While we are grateful to the Trump administration and EPA administr Administrator Lee Zeldon for shutting it down and quickly terminating these grants, further accountability is necessary. The full committee on oversight and government reform is investigating Biden's GGRF. We know that all the awardees are connected to both the Biden administration and Democratic donors and that they sit on each other's boards in an incestuous circle.
▶ 0:10:54Today, we will shine light on this dynamic. Take for example who the Democrats choose to bring in as their witnesses. Someone so entrenched into the system that she was a director at the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. a leader of a housing organization that lobbyed for more federal spending and now a nationally renowned nonprofit leader who donates to Democrat campaigns.
▶ 0:11:22Other examples include many green nos that employ former Biden administration officials. These people wrote the rules for this climate grift in which they now partake. As government officials, they were paid by taxpayers to conduct the grift. Now taxpayers are funding the grant awards that pay their salaries. This cash grab was so large that some nonprofits were birthed solely to get in on the game.
▶ 0:11:50One newly created nonprofit, Power Forward, received an received an astonishing two billion from Biden's EPA despite having just been formed. Power Forward is now part of a network tied to Rewiring America, which employs Stacy Abrams, the twice failed Democrat candidate for governor in Georgia, and voting rights activist.
▶ 0:12:16After all, however, she would have been a good hire given her history of running her own nonprofit, which spent 3.2 million on campaign resources instructing voters to support her campaign. all of which are prohibited actions for nonprofits.
▶ 0:12:33Consequently, her nonprofit was levied the largest penalty ever imposed in Georgia's history for violating state campaign finance laws. This is the circle of life. Climate and energy is just one area where the entrenched bureaucrats and political appointees have partnered with NOS's to do the left's bidding.
▶ 0:13:03Illegal immigration is another. Federally funded NOS's have egregiously abused tax dollars to fund the invasion at our southern border by providing housing, transportation, legal services, and more to shepherd illegal aliens across our border and settle them in our country. These NOS's support the cartels in their mission to invade our country under the guise of assisting migrants.
▶ 0:13:29These groups have placed criminal networks, dangerous gangs, and human traffickers into American towns and cities. Think about this. The American people's hard-earned taxpayer dollars have been used to literally import rapists, murderers, and terrorists from around the world straight into our communities. Where were these NOS's when 22year-old Lake Riley was violently murdered by an illegal?
▶ 0:13:57Where were these NOS's when 12-year-old Joselyn Nungare was brutally raped and murdered by one of these illegals? And where were these NOS's when 20year-old Kayla Hamilton was raped and strangled to death by an illegal?
▶ 0:14:14Where were these NOS's over the weekend when the illegal alien launched Molotov cocktails into a crowd in Boulder, Colorado, intentionally injuring a dozen Americans in an anti-Semitic attack. I'll tell you, they were continuing to receive taxpayer dollars to import more of these illegal alien monsters to commit more heinous crimes against our people. Many Americans are familiar with the more egregious offenders.
▶ 0:14:44These include Catholic Charities, which rad in over two billion during Biden's four years, and the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, which received over 221 million in government grants in fiscal year 2023 alone.
▶ 0:15:01But many American taxpayers are still unwittingly funding this sort of illegal activity through the United Nations, which is the conduit for much of the funding NOS's use to resettle in our country. Americans are likely unaware that their tax dollars are funding UN efforts such as the cash and voucher program involving $624,000 illegal aliens crossing the border just last year.
▶ 0:15:31This $372 million program provides prepaid debit cards and cash in envelopes to illegal aliens to facilitate their movement to and through the US border. The American taxpayer is funding groups that start the migration. The groups that show people how to cross the border by evading US immigration laws.
▶ 0:15:55These groups that have been bust and flown illegal aliens, many of them dangerous, into America. Whether exploiting taxpayers to push illegal immigration or fake environmental justice, the left's NGO scheme seeks to destroy our country and fundamentally alter the American way of life. This ongoing waste and abuse of taxpayer resources must end.
▶ 0:16:19The Trump administration is turning the tide, and today's hearing is intended to expedite the effort to drain these slush funds dry. If we don't, Democrats can't wait to return to power and continue funding their NGO friends through slush funds and stop deportations. Keep these illegal alien criminals in our country. and of course fund the Green New Deal scam again.
▶ 0:16:46And with that, I yield to the ranking member Stanbury for her opening statement. All right. Well, good afternoon everyone. Welcome indeed to the Doge subcommittee. It's always an interesting journey here.
▶ 0:17:01Madam Chairwoman, before we get started, I want to take a moment to observe that this very subcommittee was created in January to act as the congressional tip of the spear for Doge and Elon Musk's efforts inside the federal government, which our GOP colleagues were falling all over themselves to get in on the action.
▶ 0:17:22And in fact, I don't know if you know this, Madam Chairwoman, but one of your own GOP members who couldn't get on the committee actually contacted me to see if I could help because they were so desperate to participate in this activity. But here we are. I feel like we should play a breakup song in the midst of the breakup of the GOP with Elon Musk and Doge. And yet still the zombie lurches on.
▶ 0:17:49And you know, I think it's interesting that people are barely saying his name in these halls and this subcommittee barely has any credibility at this point. And Elon Musk still hasn't appeared under oath in front of this committee or any body here in Congress.
▶ 0:18:06And in fact, Donald Trump himself apparently asked his own aids this week if Doge was, and I quote the Donald Trump asked if Doge was Meanwhile, our friend Mr. Musk is going crazy on Twitter. We just checked. He's still going at it. And he literally has been tweetstorming the GOP for the last 24 hours.
▶ 0:18:33And he says, "I'm sorry, but I just can't stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork fililled congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it. you know, you did wrong. You know it. And you know what I find interesting about his tweet is that he says, "I'm sorry.
▶ 0:18:51I just can't stand it anymore." And I think, you know, the American people have been there for the last three and a half months as they've dismantled the federal government as Musk and Trump and his friends here have lay wake to the federal government, dismantling federal agencies, firing thousands of federal workers, stealing your private data, costing the federal government millions of dollars.
▶ 0:19:20And in fact, it appears that they may have actually cost more money than they apparently saved. So, it's hard to take any of this seriously or with any credibility. Musk lied about Doge and its savings. The president and the speaker just this morning once again lied about the big abomination of the bill and the deficit spending in it. There was a misrepresentation of a witness in this hearing last time.
▶ 0:19:47There was lies about the budget reconciliation and yes, the Doge package which was transmitted to Congress yesterday. And I don't think I even need to comment on the wild journey of baseless conspiracy theories that we just heard.
▶ 0:20:02So, it's very clear that Doge has made America less safe, less secure, undermined our global and national security, compromised our data privacy, impacted our ability to serve our vulnerable communities, and left the government in total chaos.
▶ 0:20:18And yet many of these Doge brothers have implanted themselves inside of federal agencies and are now answering directly to the West Wing and to the Director of Office of Management and Budget, Mr. Russell Vote, who by the way is testifying just across this campus on his bill for the FY26 budget, which would eviscerate these programs. So I want to say first they came for our federal agencies.
▶ 0:20:48Then they came for our judges and law firms and the rule of law. Then they came for the free press and your freedom of speech. Then they came for higher education and our children. Then they came for congressional offices. And now here they are coming for civil society and nonprofit organizations. What are nonprofit organizations? food banks, legal aid clinics, homeless shelters, organizations that are the glue of our communities.
▶ 0:21:17In fact, right now they are withholding a half trillion dollars illegally from nonprofit organizations that provide services for our communities, public safety, health services, housing, the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of America, Boys and Girls Club, and Habitat for Humanity. Is this the dark money scare that we're hearing across the aisle? I think all of us understand what these organizations do in our communities.
▶ 0:21:46But let us be clear, the actions that are happening here in this committee and which the administration are trying to execute through executive actions, through letters, and yes, sending Doge employees baselessly and illegally into nonprofit organizations are illegal. They lack moral authority and they lack legal authority. The truth is simple.
▶ 0:22:12Neither the president nor any other executive branch official has the power to unilaterally revoke an organization's taxexempt status or to use these authoritarian tactics to try to intimidate our nonprofit and civil society organizations. And we will dive deeper into that topic and your rights during this hearing. But if my colleagues across the aisle want to talk about dark money networks, we can look no further than this very hearing room.
▶ 0:22:41Because if we actually want to understand the dark money funded networks that are making the government run right now, let's talk about project 2025. The witnesses who are here today as part of the organizations that helped to craft it. Mr. Vote who was at the helm as the architect of that document and the folks who are inside the federal government right now dismantling our agencies and attacking every aspect of our democracy. We will not stand for it.
▶ 0:23:11And with that, Madam Chairwoman, I yield back. Without objection, representatives Gosar of Arizona, Moscowitz of Florida, and Presley of Massachusetts are waved on to the subcommittee for the purpose of questioning the witnesses at today's committee hearing. I'm pleased to introduce our witnesses today. Scott Walker is the president of Capital Research Center and an expert in investigating how nonprofits spend money and get involved in politics and advocacy.
▶ 0:23:40Mark Creoran is the executive director of the Center of Immigration Studies and is an expert on the issues of immigration and border security. Daniel Turner is the founder and executive director of Power the Future and an expert in energy and environmental issues. Diane Yentl is the president and chief executive officer of the National Council of Nonprofits. Again, I want to thank all of you for being here to testify today.
▶ 0:24:08Pursuant to committee rule 9G, the witnesses will please stand and raise their right hand. Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the testimony you are about to give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. So, help you guide. Let the record show that the witnesses answered in the affirmative. Thank you. You may take a seat.
▶ 0:24:37We appreciate you being here today and look forward to your testimony. Let me remind the witnesses that we have read your written statements and they will appear in the full uh in full in the hearing record. Please limit your oral statement to five minutes. As a reminder, please press the button on the microphone in front of you so that it is on and the members can hear you. When you begin to speak, the light in front of you will turn green.
▶ 0:25:05After four minutes, the light will turn yellow. When the red light comes on, your five minutes have it has expired and we would ask that you please wrap it up quickly. I now recognize Mr. Walter for his opening statement. Thank you, Chairwoman Green, Ranking Member Stanbury, distinguished members of the subcommittee. Thank you for the honor of testifying. I'm president of the Capital Research Center where we study nonprofits every day.
▶ 0:25:34Americans are proud of our nonprofit sector, which has long led the world, because they love real charities that actually help people here and abroad. They don't think of the nonprofit sector as the play thing of billionaires and politicians. Yet, all too often, that is the reality of our non-governmental organizations or NOS. Far too many NOS are really BOS, basically government organizations, for two reasons.
▶ 0:26:03First, they get most of their money from government, not citizens. Second, they serve the big government political agenda that fights to centralized power in Washington for the benefit of the left's preferred political party. From countless egregious examples, consider the Solidarity Center. This nonprofit child of the country's largest union federation, the AFL CIO, is chaired by the AFL CIO's president.
▶ 0:26:29Solidarity Center doesn't just boost unions, it also champions DEI and climate justice. It's suing the current administration because Doge recommended its federal gravy train and it was received over $86 million from the federal government six 2008.
▶ 0:26:4761 of that 86 million was given under President Biden, doubtless encouraged by the three Solidarity employees who went into the labor Solidarity receives 99% of its revenue from American taxpayers. It serves the AFL CIO, which gave 86% of its 2024 political donations to Democrats.
▶ 0:27:12Today's Democratic witness, Diane Yentel, is yet another powerful example of nonprofits serving big government. One of her typical tweets attacked Doge and defended the Vera Institute of Justice, which in 2023 received 79% of its revenues from government. It's a hard-left sorosbacked group whose priorities oppose the views of Americans Democratic majority by advocating soft on crime policies and defending illegal aliens.
▶ 0:27:39Its biggest vendor in its last IRS filing was Blue State Digital, which began life as Barack Obama's digital campaign team and now serves the entire left. Miss Yentel was hired by Obama at HUD, and President Biden considered her for a cabinet post. Her previous job was leading the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, an NGO that advocates for ever more federal spending by HUD and uses identity politics to justify its agenda.
▶ 0:28:07In her current job leading the National Council of Nonprofits, Miss Yentle quickly sued the Trump administration over budget cuts. What lawyers did she turn to? The Democracy Forward Foundation, whose board includes President Biden's notorious chief of staff, Ron Clay, and is chaired by Mark Elias, the Democratic super lawyer.
▶ 0:28:28Miss Gentle claims the Republican tax bill would have handed quote unchecked power to the Trump administration to punish nonprofit orgs that don't fall in line with its ideology by labeling them as terrorist supporting groups. Nonsense.
▶ 0:28:41As an honest left-leaning law professor explained in the Chronicle of Philanthropy, quote, "A desperate seeking to silence nonprofits would be weakened, not empowered by the legislation." No wonder nonprofit expert Bill Shambra warned that Yentel's partisanship at a major nonprofit membership group may erode public support for nonprofits by suggesting, quote, "Nonprofits are just like any other major institution of American society, fighting fiercely to maintain the status quo
▶ 0:29:11against necessary reforms. It's understandable, though not admirable, that status quo nonprofit leaders are scared by Doge examining their government funding. They'll use an urban institute study designed to scare you members of Congress with statistics like government grants support nonprofits in every congressional district. No one explains why it's wonderful that so many nonprofits are as dependent on government cash as a meth addict is on methamphetamine.
▶ 0:29:40The same study stresses how larger nonprofits especially hoover up tax dollars. But while big nonprofits are often less effective at helping people compared to smaller neighborhood groups, they certainly are more powerful at lobbying government in the service of bigger government and the left. They're also great at suing government.
▶ 0:29:59Uh this politicized pseudo charity aimed at bloating government and seizing political power goes back decades as when uh the Obama administration took money from Catholic charities and gave it to Planned Parenthood. This is a simple ugly story of tax dollars, cronyism, and political scheming camouflaged by invoking the moving stories of the real heroes of America's charitable sector. Please don't fall for the Saab stories. Thank you, Mr. Walter. I now recognize Mr.
▶ 0:30:28Creoran for his opening statement. Thank you. Uh during the four years of the Biden administration, the United States devoted significant taxpayer funds to facilitating illegal immigration. There's been much reporting about the role of NOS's in this process after the illegal immigrants crossed into the United States. But what the center has examined is what happened before the migrants got to the Rio Grand.
▶ 0:30:55In other words, how NOS's and UN agencies were paid by US taxpayers to facilitate the illegal movement of migrants from through South and Central America and Mexico. We've documented a large UN NGO support network from field reporting and annual reports um from this group called the regional refugee and migrant response plan.
▶ 0:31:18This network consisted of way stations all along Latin American illegal migration routes that made it possible for millions of foreign nationals from as many as 180 countries to illegally get to the US border in part funded by US taxpayers.
▶ 0:31:36Some of this some of these funds were provided directly to NOS's by the State Department's Bureau of Population Refugees and Migration or Other funding was sent indirectly through our funding of UN agencies which then in turn funded NOS's. This often was described as merely humanitarian assistance to people who would travel anyway.
▶ 0:31:59But in reality, this amounted to a coordinated well-funded assistance to designed to undermine US immigration laws. Starting in se South America and Central America, NOS's handed out millions of dollars worth of supplies designed to assist recipients in their plans to illegally breach the borders not just of the United States but of half a dozen countries along the way. Just a couple of examples.
▶ 0:32:24In Colombia, in northwestern Colombia, the center found NOS's working in coordination with a drug paramilitary drug smuggling group called Clan Delgulo, also known as the um, which controlled the smuggling routes in those areas.
▶ 0:32:42Um the to get an idea of how this worked, there's a town in northwest Colombia called Nikki, which is a major staging area for migrants trying to cross at the Gulf of Urba to get to the jumping off point for trips through the uh Darian Gap. Well, uh, our researcher went to Nick Oakley and found what amounted to kind of a swap meet or farmers market of NGO groups with booths of UN and NGO organizations there to provide assistance.
▶ 0:33:12Just a couple of examples, the Florida based NGO Cadana was set up in a booth next to the Silver Springbased Adventist Development and Relief Agency, and there were many other US-based and overseas-based groups there. and they provided a variety of services, assistance on how to make it through the Darian Gap, uh, food, dry socks, backpacks, etc.
▶ 0:33:36When they crossed that Gulf of Udaba, they're still in Colombia and they get to the village of Akandi, which is where you jump off to go to the uh, Darian Gap. And there the NGO UN group the camp was in a was in a camp where the security for the camp was provided by this drug smuggling gang.
▶ 0:33:58In other words, and it's not clear to us, we don't have evidence of this, but it seems likely to me that NOS's and the UN paid for the security by paying this drug smuggling gang to um for security for this uh jumping off point. After they pass through Central America, they get to southern Mexico, cross from Guatemala into southern Mexico. And there, Tapacula is the town that is uh the first place you get to.
▶ 0:34:25And what we found there was a large kind of a one-stop shop illegal immigration mall where the UN agencies and the NOS's were supposed to be housing them. This was under construction when we went last fall and it was only one of similar many similar camps. There's several in northern Mexico as well.
▶ 0:34:45Especially curious in Tapachula was an NGO funded by the UN which means funded by the US which provided repressed memory therapy for illegal immigrants who had been rejected for asylum by Mexico which they do in order to be able to make it through Mexico without hassles. They had been rejected.
▶ 0:35:06They went to the repressed memory theory uh therapy and got a certificate that they had forgotten about the persecution they had suffered and now they remembered it and so they went to their appeal and they got their um their asylum status. So throughout Latin America these networks funded in part by US taxpayers have made this flow of illegal immigrants possible.
▶ 0:35:31And yet oversight has remained absent and Congress has not cracked down and insisted that recipients of funding not engage in promoting illegal Thank you, Mr. Cororan. I now recognize Mr. Turner for his opening statement. Madam Chairman Green, Ranking Member Stanbury, good afternoon and thank you for the opportunity to appear before the committee today. Three words often heard in tandem with Doge are waste, fraud, and abuse.
▶ 0:36:00And I hope my testimony can shed light on the third word, abuse. I started my organization, Power of the Future, to advocate for energy workers in rural America. And it has come to light that on the other side of that fight, the climate movement received billions from taxpayers. And that is the abuse I wish to highlight. The 2022 inflation reduction act set aside hundreds of billions of dollars for the green agenda. The Environmental Protection Agency received tens of billions.
▶ 0:36:26As reported by the Washington Free Beacon, a staffer from an environmental group called the Coalition for Green Capital named Jai Weiss joined the Biden EPA to direct $27 billion in green funding. For context, $27 billion is larger than the budgets of the departments of Treasury, Interior, and Commerce. Yet, Mr.
▶ 0:36:47Ji went through no confirmation process and his decision to direct tens of billions to organizations of his choosing had no congressional oversight and conveniently under his tenure in this new EPA role 5 billion was granted to his former organization the coalition for green capital. The abundance of green dollars created a new pernitious mechanism create a group for the sole purpose of getting government grants.
▶ 0:37:12For example, Power Forward Communities was only a few months old when it applied for and received nearly $9 billion to distribute at its own discretion. And one lucky recipient was an organization affiliated with two-time Georgia gubanatorial candidate Stacy Abrams. With only $100 in the bank, this group received $2 billion.
▶ 0:37:34Yes, it is legal to create a nonprofit to get IRS accreditation, apply for and receive government grants, but it is fair to question the process and demand transparency. What does the application for a $9 billion grant look like? Particularly when an organization has no staff, no history in the space, no office, and is only a few months old. A Department of Defense grant of this size would have layers of transparency.
▶ 0:38:01A Department of Transportation grant that size would require a bond to guarantee deliverables. Yet, it seems that in the name of climate change, unvetted, unelected, unconfirmed bureaucrats require no safeguards. And this is the pres uh the precedent of pernicious funding. Any future president can announce a slush fund, appoint loyalists to dole it out, and anyone can create a group to get government billions if they know the right people, bypassing that pesky thing called Congress.
▶ 0:38:30In his recent Senate hearing, Secretary of State Rubio said Doge uncovered for every dollar spent at USAID, only 12 cents was actually received in aid. The rest was spent on overhead, high salaries, dinners, events, travel, raising awareness. You can call it overhead. A better term is grift. But this funding scandal is far worse in context.
▶ 0:38:55For at the same time the Biden administration was generously rewarding climate groups with billions, they enacted the most radical energy agenda in history, which punished the American people. Making energy expensive made life expensive. And we saw under the Biden administration record high inflation, skyrocketing price of energy, gas, utilities, food, and consumer goods. It was bad enough to dole out billions, but to do it to the very groups making America unaffordable was a new low.
▶ 0:39:24even for Washington DC. And unless this Congress changes the laws, the mechanisms are still in place to appropriate new funds using a new crisis, forming new groups, skirting Congress, and ripping off the taxpayers. Last week, my organization sent letters to this committee and Attorney General Bondi calling for an investigation into the Biden administration use of autopen on green executive orders, asking if Biden himself directed them or if the staff took leniencies.
▶ 0:39:53A very severe accusation, but made even more plausible in the light of this hearing. Abuse. Abuse of the purse. Abuse of the pen. Also that climate groups and their political allies could benefit. This is the very worst of Washington and why the American people have such little trust in government. For our nation to survive, Congress must restore trust in government, end the slush fund abuse, stop the grift, and it is my sincere hope that my appearance here today can help begin the process.
▶ 0:40:23Thank you, and I look forward to your questions. Thank you, Mr. Turner. I now recognize Miss Yenel for her opening statement. Chairwoman Green, Ranking Member Stanbury, and members of the subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to share how America's charitable nonprofits serve communities across the country.
▶ 0:40:41From small towns to big cities, in every congressional district and state, nonprofits feed, heal, shelter, and nurture people of all walks of life and every political persuasion. From hospitals to libraries, churches to food banks, from veterans to school children, artists to researchers, charitable nonprofits touch and benefit all Americans all our lives.
▶ 0:41:10Nonprofits are local, accountable, transparent, and are nonpartisan by law and in practice. The vast majority of nonprofits are small to midsized. 92% have budgets of less than $1 million. Nonprofits step in to fill gaps not met by government or other entities alone. They show up in times of crisis, providing disaster relief, hotlines, and safety from danger.
▶ 0:41:40And they meet everyday needs in local communities, from providing child care and elder care, job training, or essential food and shelter. Simply put, the work of charitable nonprofits improves lives and strengthens communities and the country. Nonprofits represent the best of America. Neighbors helping neighbors. Despite this essential work, nonprofits are at risk and under attack by this administration and by some in Congress.
▶ 0:42:10Across the country, nonprofits are having federal funding slashed or eliminated due to arbitrary cuts of congressionally approved spending and through reckless and unlawful federal funding freezes by the Trump administration. These actions are causing real harm. Food banks across the country, already struggling with high levels of need, are serving fewer meals due to spending cuts.
▶ 0:42:36Nonprofit health clinics have closed, leaving neighbors without access to potentially lifesaving care. Nonprofits focused on preventing violence and crime have seen their budgets disappear, putting a stop to critical work. After school programs have been cancelled and school lunch programs are squeezed.
▶ 0:42:56nonprofits that serve young mothers, respond to disasters, help address mental health or substance of use, or operate child enrichment programs face funding shortfalls. And the threats to nonprofits are broader than federal funding.
▶ 0:43:13Senior members of this administration and some witnesses here today give egregious mischaracterizations of the work of nonprofits, even using dangerous rhetoric to vilify nonprofits. There are repeated threats against nonprofits that hold views that don't align with this administration.
▶ 0:43:34From statements calling for the illegal unilateral revoking of their te taxexempt status to attempted takeovers, audits, and even threats of civil or criminal investigations by the federal government, not for any wrongdoing, but for doing work at odds with the administration's ideology.
▶ 0:43:56The administration's targeting of organizations and institutions with which it disagrees is a fundamentally unamerican action and something that should concern us all. These actions aren't about government efficiency or about reform. They are attempted censorship disguised as accountability.
▶ 0:44:18This is weaponization of the federal government to chill dissent and it is wrong whatever party is in control. In a functioning and healthy democracy, nonprofits must be free to identify and meet local needs without political interference, fear of retribution, or facing punishment for holding a different point of view from those in political power.
▶ 0:44:46Nonprofits are the backbone of our country, providing critical support to communities and saving lives. Defending and supporting their essential work shouldn't divide us along political lines. It should unite us as Americans. Thank you for the opportunity and I look forward to your questions. I now recognize myself for five minutes of questioning.
▶ 0:45:11The American people definitely support nonprofits and um but what they don't support is corruption, waste, fraud, and abuse. In 2024, right as the Biden administration was leaving office, the Democrats finalized the awards that amounted to 20 billion under its greenhouse gas reduction slush fund to launder government funding to eight politically aligned nonprofits. Several of which were newly created solely to join in on the massive grift.
▶ 0:45:40One of these awardees is Power Forward. Mr. Turner, you've spent a lot of time diving into leftist green nos. Um, was the NGO Power Forward just created a couple of years ago? Yes or no? Yes. Is fiscal year tw in fiscal year 2023, did Power Forward report only $100 in revenue on their 990 financial disclosure form? Yes. Was Power Forward slated to receive $2 billion in federal funding?
▶ 0:46:10Yes, that's 20 million times Is it common place for completely new nonprofits with zero track record to receive a multi-billion dollar grant from the federal government? There is no private entity that would give an organization 20 million times revenue after a few months of creation. Only government is stupid enough to do that. That's right. There's no business in America could get that loan from a bank. Is Rewiring America part of the same NGO coalition? Is Power Forward? Part of the same coalition?
▶ 0:46:40Yes. Did Rewiring America hire Stacy Abrams? Uh, she's affiliated with the organization. Uh, it's unclear in what capacity, but yes. Is she an energy expert? No. So, it's pretty eye openening that a brand new politically connected group got such a massive federal grant, rewiring America, hired Stacy Abrams, as far as we know, a twice failed candidate for Georgia governor and well-known Democrat activist, even though she has little to no
▶ 0:47:10knowledge of energy policy. But the leader of Power Forward praised Abrams for playing a pivotal role in securing these billions. Notably, Abrams Pack spent over 126 million on Democrat campaigns over the last five years. This recirculation of taxpayer funds literally is the Democrat's circle of life. Uh, Mr. Creoran, we witnessed the worst border immigration catastrophe under the Biden administration.
▶ 0:47:40It seems to me that many immigrationoriented NOS's have double dipped their hands in taxpayer money. My first question is how influential were the American taxpayer funded NOS's at facilitating the movement of illegal aliens to and through our country's borders. Extremely influential.
▶ 0:48:00Now, some of this would have happened anyway because of the Biden administration's invitation to mass illegal immigration, but the invitation required some means of this happening, some means of doing it. And so what it did is the taxpayer money essentially turned the illegal immigration crisis up to 11. It would have existed otherwise, but it was significantly uh magnified by this uh government funding by the Biden's administration policies.
▶ 0:48:31Right. You've mentioned that the United Nations pay psychologists to help illegal aliens reverse asylum denials on appeal. Specifically, tax dollars go to the UN, which directs and pays psychologists to help illegal aliens unearth repressed memories of torture, persecution, and human rights violation so that they can legally claim asylum.
▶ 0:48:56Is this an an intentional effort to subvert our immigration laws by creating fake narratives for asylum seekers? I can't put myself into someone else's head, but I can't imagine any other plausible way to describe it. And initially, just to be clear, they use this to get Mexican asylum, which they use as a kind of trampoline to get to the United States and then present those repressed memory documents as part of their evidence when they are in removal proceedings as part of their asylum claims.
▶ 0:49:26And do they provide uh legal help to to apply for asylum claims? Uh that's inside the United States, so that's beyond the scope of my uh testimony here. Thank you. Uh Mr. Mr. Walter, um you've been investigating NGO funding sources for a long time. Do you know of other examples of former elected or appointed officials in the NGO sector securing significant federal tax dollars through grants or contracts?
▶ 0:49:52Uh well uh we've had mentioned here the $2 billion slush fund and of course uh the OM and HUD director Shawn Donovan uh has been mixed up in that and then of course uh I uh there have been public reports as well about the millions of dollars um that the wife of Senator Sheldon White House has received from NOS's uh whose legislation he's helped push. Yeah, thank you. Uh my time has expired and thank you all for being here.
▶ 0:50:20I now recognize raking member Stanbury for five minutes of questions. Thank you so much, Madam Chairwoman. And I want to welcome back some of our guests here today. Mr. Corean, I recognize you from last summer when you came to testify. Uh, welcome back. Uh, just want to clarify, you served on the board for project 2025. Is that correct? Uh, I don't think I was on a board. We were we were one of the adviserss for it, but yes. So yes, you you served in an advisory role on project 2025.
▶ 0:50:51I appreciate that. Uh and Mr. Walter, uh I just want to clarify a few things about Capital Research Center. Uh this is the organization that acted as a fiscal sponsor for Jenny Thomas's nonprofit. Correct. For a project that she was one of many people involved with. Yes. Yes. And this is Jenny Thomas, Justice Clarence Thomas's wife.
▶ 0:51:15And my understanding is that the there was a donor advised fund that was the primary donor to that funding under your fiscal sponsorship. In fact, it looks like about $400,000 was channeled through your organization. And if I'm correct based on what I see here, the primary donors are the Koch brothers, the Surls, the Mercers, oh, and Leonard Leo.
▶ 0:51:38And some of you may recall Leonard Leo because of course he's at the center of many of the uh big issues around Supreme Court ethics, but also you all may recognize him because last week Donald Trump called him a sleazag who probably hates America for his interference in the judiciary and his efforts to try to undermine what Donald Trump is trying to do. Um so a very interesting cast of characters indeed. And Mr. Turner.
▶ 0:52:06Uh, as I understand it, you're a former employee of the Koch Institute, correctly? Yes. All right. So, I think, you know, these are always very interesting hearings we have in the oversight committee. Uh we have some retreads of some witnesses who've been here before.
▶ 0:52:20All of which uh are uh participants in organizations that were involved in project 2025 that are funded through the same dark money networks and organizations of the Quo Koch brothers and Leonard Leo and the Surls and the Mercers who fund all this stuff project 2025 the stuff that's happening in front of the Supreme Court rolling back our rights that helped to get you know over 70 project 2025 authors placed in the administration acting in
▶ 0:52:50high level roles right now that are bringing cases in front of the Supreme Court undermining our democracy and which are attacking organizations who are working on civil society programs. So I think I already said this but I think it's very clear what is going on here.
▶ 0:53:08And I want to point out that the project that uh that uh Miss Jenny Thomas was fundraising for through Capital Research Center um let's see what was the direct quote uh literally was formed with the mission to attack the left a culture war to wage a culture war against the left. So, I think we can see what's going on here. But this is not a joke, right?
▶ 0:53:31Miss Yentle, you're here uh in your role of helping to advise nonprofit organizations and provide uh institutional infrastructure. I know there's been a number of untrue things said here today, both about your own professional background as well as the affiliated organizations that help to support our small nonprofits across the country.
▶ 0:53:50But I think it is really important and this is a message we want to drive home today that the attacks on nonprofit organizations that the Trump administration is undertaking including trying to find executive authority to take away taxexempt status are both illegal and immoral. Would you agree? Excuse me. Thank you for the question.
▶ 0:54:11Yes, it is illegal for the president uh or any member of the executive office to direct the IRS to make any changes to the tax status of an individual or an organization. And in fact, the law makes clear that if the president threatens to revoke taxexempt status from an individual organization, they can be convicted up to five years in prison.
▶ 0:54:35And so could you please tell us, you know, we want to make sure that for any nonprofit watching because I know there are probably hundreds if not thousands across the country because they're deeply concerned of what might be coming. What should nonprofits be doing to prepare if Doge or the administration tries to either infiltrate or take away their status? Well, nonprofits should know that that's illegal and they do. That's part of what we've been working to educate uh nonprofits.
▶ 0:55:00But mostly what nonprofits should continue to do is the incredibly important vital work that they do in communities and to try not to be distracted by threats and um unlawful actions by the president. Nonprofit organizations are local.
▶ 0:55:19They are transparent, accountable, they are nonpartisan, and they do vital work in communities with communities, identifying and prioritizing local needs, and then working with the communities to meet those needs in ways that the government and other private entities don't. The gentle lady's time is expired. I now recognize the chairman of oversight, Mr. Comr from Kentucky. Thank you, Madam Chair. Mr.
▶ 0:55:44Turner, I've launched an investigation, or the committee has, we all have, into the role of former senior White House officials impossibly abusing the authority of former President Joe Biden while uh the former president was rapidly deteriorating uh mentally and physically. We will be conducting transcribed interviews of a number of former White House officials to understand who was really making the decisions uh for President Biden.
▶ 0:56:10Your group power the future has expressed concerns that over half a dozen of the Biden administration executive actions which were signed by the autopin uh related to climate policy should be deemed null and void uh again due to the fact that they were signed by the autopin without any public comment from President Biden confirming his knowledge of them.
▶ 0:56:36Now, why is it important that the American people know the truth about whether President Biden knowingly signed these orders making significant and drastic shifts in our energy policy? Thank you for the question, sir. We're we're looking at at this from the sense of of deceit of the American people. This is impersonation of the president. Um staffers of course have a lot of leniency in what they do working on behalf of the president.
▶ 0:56:59But these executive orders that we identified, there's no evidence of Joe Biden in first person in his voice as president talking about them. And and I see some Pennians on the panel. When you ban the export of liquid natural gas and you never get asked about it in person, one has to wonder if Joe Biden did it or if his staffer did it on his You specifically expressed concern that President Biden was not aware of that specific uh action to implement the executive order pausing liqufied natural
▶ 0:57:29gas permits. Now, why are you specifically concerned the president was unaware of that specific order? Well, there's an anecdote from earlier this year where Speaker of the House Johnson mentioned he was in a conversation with President Biden and brought it up and the president said, "I don't know what you're talking about." Uh, at the time that was understood as, "Wow, maybe the president's a little worse off than we realized." But maybe two things can be true. Maybe he really didn't know what what Speaker Johnston was talking about. Maybe he had no idea he passed this executive order.
▶ 0:57:58And and if if the president has never asked about it and he hides from the press and there's no opportunity for him to get asked in public about it, how do we know he actually did it? And these are serious executive orders. This is not it. It is bizarre. You know, when President Trump signed his executive orders, we we saw him sign the executive orders. He had a big uh event. He was they were talking about the executive orders. They said, "This is what this specific executive order is." We never saw any of that. No. And lives were destroyed, sir.
▶ 0:58:26And when you ban the export of liquid natural gas, there are hundreds of thousands of men and women who work in the natural gas industry. Lives are destroyed. People went bankrupt because of that. And we have no evidence that Joe Biden himself actually We haven't found any evidence either that.
▶ 0:58:40And and ironically, unlike some of the investigations we've done in the past with respect to the former president, uh not many of the colleagues on the other side of the aisle are disputing uh many of the uh the things that have come out in the tapper book, the things that have come out with statements like what uh former transportation secretary Buddhajig and others have said that they were shielded from the president. So uh we look forward to having these staffers come in.
▶ 0:59:09uh our committee will be conducting transcribed interviews, possibly depositions, uh depending on uh how quickly they they they come in and and hopefully we'll get the truth to the American people. I want to switch gears and talk about the the NOS's. The full committee has another investigation into uh uh you know, the green energy scam. I I don't know how else to put it. uh known as the green green greenhouse gas reduction fund and the NOS's that receive significant amounts of money through it.
▶ 0:59:40Uh can you tell us a little bit about uh about this and the NOS's and the left obviously they advocate for initiatives as a as an excuse to spend billions in local communities but but enrich themselves too. Uh who else benefits from these from these handouts?
▶ 0:59:58you know there every every Democrat I know Miss Stanbury loves government programs they love to spend money and create bureaucracies but but who really benefits from programs like this specific scam that I talked about the operatives align to to to these organizations consultancy groups PR firms lawyers uh and and it's all just an enormous cabal sounds like a base for one of the two political parties 100% yeah well thank you very much we look forward to to uh this committee
▶ 1:00:28working to get the truth to the American people and try to get spending under control. And you know, we're going to see if these if these executive orders were really authorized by the president or if this was was being done unilaterally by some unnamed bureaucrats. Madam Chair, thank you for this uh subcommittee hearing. I yield back. Thank you. The gentleman yields and I now recognize Miss Norton from Washington DC. Thank you uh Madame Chair.
▶ 1:00:55Uh today's hearing is yet another attempt to rationalize the repeated attempts by the Trump administration to destroy the ability of the federal government to address the needs of the American people. Spending months denigrating federal employees and gutting the civil services is not enough for the administration.
▶ 1:01:21The president is also attacking universities, law firms, nonprofit groups, and charities in a desperate attempt to control civil society, silence descent, and seize absolute power.
▶ 1:01:36Miss Yentel, we have heard committee Republicans and their witnesses attempt to v villainize DOS uh today because they do not want to say what they are really attacking nonprofits. What are nonprofit organizations and what kinds of work do they do in local communities? Thank you for the question, Congresswoman.
▶ 1:02:06Nonprofit organizations are local, transparent, accountable. They are predominantly small or midsized. About 92% of nonprofit organizations have budgets of less than $1 million. So, they are experts at stretching every dollar for the biggest impact in communities.
▶ 1:02:27and they are predominantly in local communities working with communities to identify and prioritize needs and then working to meet those needs with the communities. Nonprofits step in to fill gaps that are left by that the federal government and private entities on their own can't meet. So often they partner with government to do the work that they're doing and they show up in times of crisis.
▶ 1:02:55They provide vital disaster relief assistance. They staff mental health hotlines. They provide safety from danger. They also show up in communities to meet our everyday needs from child care to elder care, from libraries to food banks to providing essential shelter. So nonprofits really meet the needs of all Americans throughout our lives.
▶ 1:03:24And virtually all of us are touched by and benefit from a nonprofit in our local Mr. Gentle, uh are nonprofits uh partisan organizations as the majority has tried to claim today? No. Nonpart nonprofit organizations are nonpartisan both by law and in practice.
▶ 1:03:51uh these attempts by the administration to make it clear they do do not want nonprofits to protect to provide expert services that protect the local needs and goals of our communities just as they do not want a government with a qualified nonpartisan merit-based federal workforce.
▶ 1:04:11Instead, the administration wants a patronized system with services provided only by and for those who share their political views. Uh Trump's attacks on nonprofits come while his allies in Congress cut government services that support the most vulnerable in our society. Uh, Miss Yentle, uh, you have referred to nonprofits as America's backbone.
▶ 1:04:43How do nonprofit organizations fill gaps in government services to meet local needs? Well, nonprofit organizations show up to meet local needs in many ways. And the federal government, of course, Congress, appropriates funding. And some, not all, but some nonprofit organizations apply for through very rigorous processes to receive federal funding.
▶ 1:05:07And if they're found to be eligible, and if they're found to be able to meet the rigorous oversight and accountability requirements to receive those funds, they do. And then they put those dollars to good work in local communities, meeting a whole spectrum of needs that are identified by the community. But it's important to know too that nonprofits earn these funds from the federal government through the work that they do and also have a diversified revenue source.
▶ 1:05:36So about 27% of nonprofits receive federal funding earn federal funding for the work that they do. Those nonprofits and the nonprofits that don't receive their funding from a variety of sources. um all of them dedicated to meeting local needs and working with the community to to the gentle lady's time is expired and I now recognize Mr. Cloud from Texas. Thank you, Chairwoman.
▶ 1:06:02And uh I think it's important at the outset to kind of level set on the language being used because there seems to be an intentional uh attempt at creating a smoke screen about what we're talking about today in order to confuse people. Indeed, the ranking member tried to equate private donations going to conservative organizations with taxpayer dollars going to leftist organizations as if that was the same thing. And even as you talk about charitable NOS's, we're all for charitable NOS's.
▶ 1:06:30And a lot of what you're saying is true about the vast majority of NOS's, but there's 120,000 of them as you mentioned, and not all of them are that uh wonderful. And uh to the point, Republicans historically decades over decades have far outpaced Democrats in their charitable giving. Uh as a matter of fact, scripture gives a definition of what charity is. Each of you should give exactly what you've decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion. God loves a cheerful giver.
▶ 1:06:57We're all about charity, but charity isn't uh given at the strong arm mandate of the federal government requiring taxpayers. That's not charity. That is uh taxes. That's a completely different thing. And so what we're going after today is taxpayer dollars going to NOS's that are doing uh bad work. Um indeed so many of these organizations do have a high percentage. I appreciate what you said, Mr. Walter. You called them basically government organizations.
▶ 1:07:25I've thought of them uh in a sense as quasi government organizations. Many of these have been stood up in a sense because it removes it adds one more layer uh away from accountability on the taxpayer dollars. For example, we had Secretary Morcus coming here claiming pause plausible deniability on much of the stuff that was happening at our border. Why? Because the dollars go to an NGO who's doing the work. And so if they're giving out uh Sedexo cards to illegal immigrants to incentivize them coming into the United States, you know, I don't know anything about that. It's an NGO doing that.
▶ 1:07:56Uh and then when we send that through the UN as another uh kind of filter away from accountability, it muddies the waters even more. And so as the department of government efficiency and the doge subcommittee here, we're working to bring transparency to this process. Uh, one of the things I I wanted to mention was Endeavors. Uh, Endeavors was stood up as part of this illegal immigration scheme uh that that uh and this entire industry that was created.
▶ 1:08:25Endeavors I think approximately had maybe a $40 million operating budget. Um, and you had a a gentleman by the name of uh, Loren Lorenzen Strait who was on the Biden transition committee who suddenly found himself on the endeavors board. And normally when a government puts out, you know, they put out a a request a request for proposal and then you're supposed to get multiple sources. Here the government didn't even put out a request for proposal.
▶ 1:08:53he came and presented uh a proposal and got a million contract from the federal government followed by an $87 million contract. So far more 90% or more uh of the income was coming from the federal government. To me, this ceases to be an NGO. Mr. Walter, you spoke to that.
▶ 1:09:16uh could you narrow down what we're talking about here when we talk about uh these NOS's that are how many are are there that are like this uh is you know where where much of their income is from from taxpayer dollars shockingly there are at least 35,000 NOS's that receive most of their money from government uh and thank you by the way for mentioning that yes the the ranking member attacked a charity um that supports my organization so I don't understand why Miss Yentel uh didn't
▶ 1:09:46upgrade her for that. Well, one of the things that DOA is uncovering, it's it's shocking uh that that this is you you would think that this is would be an issue across the lines that you have a lack of transparency on taxpayer dollars, but it it would seem that many on the left are content with the fact that this is a feature of the system, not not a bug of the system. We're working to get get that out. Mr.
▶ 1:10:10Correan, I wanted to see if you could bring light as to how this NGO apparatus helped enable cartels to profit uh and also helped to incentivize illegal immigration into our country. the um what the nonprofits did and the and the UN again funded in part by the US government was make it possible for people to move through because these are people without don't have a lot of money anyway and so by providing them cash literally envelopes of cash
▶ 1:10:40sometimes as well as cash cards food supplies etc they made it possible for people to move and who were the smugglers making money off of this many of them were actually drug smuggling organizations who either just collected a toll or in some cases as we saw in Colombia were integrally part of the smuggling operation.
▶ 1:11:02So this was they were clearly working with these um cartel and smuggling organizations which were enriched by this flow of illegal immigration. The gentleman's time is expired. I now recognize Mr. Lynch from Massachusetts for five minutes. Thank you, Madam Chair, and the ranking member. Uh, also like to thank the witnesses for their willingness to come before the committee and help us with our work.
▶ 1:11:30Uh, Madam Chair, I just want to describe a couple of documents that I'm going to ask to have submitted into the record by unanimous unanimous consent. One is entitled is a New York Times article dated March 16th. The title is investigators see no criminality by EPA officials in the case of Biden era grants. without objection. So ordered. I'm still going to describe it. Thank you.
▶ 1:11:54Um and it it the sub head says a contestious a contentious investigation that questioned the legality of EPA grants has found very little to even suggest that government employees vi violated the law. The second is a Washington Post article uh entitled Trump's false claims that Stacy Adams headed a group that got 1.9 billion. Without objection. So ordered. Thank Thank you so much, Madam Chair.
▶ 1:12:23And uh I'll I'll I'll sum up by saying that that allegation got four Pinocchios. All right. So, uh, Miss Yentle, uh, President Trump, Elon Musk, and Doge have decimated essential service services, uh, lifeline programs and services that millions of Americans rely on, uh, for food, for affordable housing, and and for health care.
▶ 1:12:50Just yesterday, ranking member Rosa Deloro of Connecticut of the House Appropriations Committee reported uh detailed information indicating that Trump administration is freezing at least $425 billion in federal funding that Congress had already approved for communities in Democratic and Republican districts nationwide for critical services and programs that serve all Americans.
▶ 1:13:16Some of the funding that has been frozen or terminated by the Trump administration includes $3.8 billion frozen for justice programs, including grants that support community policing cops programs. Uh victim services uh including the violence against women programs that uh operate uh nationally.
▶ 1:13:37Uh, also $770 million terminated for NIH grants that support Alzheimer's, cancer, diabetes, and women's health research. He also froze or actually terminated $1 billion for states to support substance abuse treatment and mental health services. And lastly, 6 point this is not lastly, but this is last on my list.
▶ 1:14:02uh $6.1 billion dollars uh frozen or terminated to support cutting edge scientific and biomedical research at higher education institutions. One of those programs uh is run by professor Joan Brua. Uh she's a re she has a research team at Harvard University. She's working on early detection u uh protocols for ovarian cancer.
▶ 1:14:28One of the tough things about ovarian cancer and why it's so deadly is that there are no early detection methods. So, uh Joan Buga actually is working on identifying precursors that allow early detection of ovarian cancer which affects about 20,000 women every single year.
▶ 1:14:50So, uh, when we think about this reconciliation bill and and, uh, the recisions that are going on here for for for funding for a lot of these notfor and and and charitable institutions, what's the impact of that on those individual organizations and the work that they do? Thank you, Congressman.
▶ 1:15:12All of these cuts, these arbitrary and often unlawful, illegal cuts to congressionally appropriated funding are doing real harm to your constituents, to the constituents of everybody on this committee and throughout Congress. And if I could just for a moment to say um in response to what the previous congressman raised, he's absolutely right that nonprofit organizations enjoy strong bipartisan support.
▶ 1:15:42And there are many Republican champions for nonprofits. I know there are Republicans on this committee and throughout Congress that serve on boards of nonprofits, that volunteer their hours for nonprofits. That's exactly right. And this isn't a smoke screen. This is who nonprofits are and the work that they do is essential. And when funding, this federal funding is cut that nonprofits use to meet local community needs, it harms Americans.
▶ 1:16:11You mentioned the cuts to uh justice spending. That means organizations that are working to prevent crime are having their budgets slashed. We're seeing uh nonprofit health clinics have to shut their doors. We're seeing food banks who were all the gentleman's times expired. I now recognize Mr. Fallon from Texas for five minutes. Thank you, Madam Chair. I also want to recognize that we have uh the chairman of Doge Texas, Giovani Kepri Leone is with us today.
▶ 1:16:41Uh Miss Yenszel, you are currently the I want to get this right. The CEO of the National Council of Nonprofits. Am I right? Yes, that's right. Okay. And you were former president of the National Lowincome Housing Coalition. Correct. Okay. Uh in your current job as a CEO of the National Council of Nonprofits, are you familiar with the nonprofit that has been mentioned here up on the DAS, the power forward communities? I am. You have? Okay. Yeah.
▶ 1:17:07And that five organizations led the power forward and one of them was was uh were you familiar with rewiring America? Yes. And uh do you know that Stacy Abrams was their counsel lead counsel? I believe she was an adviser. She was well I have it right here. It uh says that she was, this is from their press release, she was their senior counsel. Okay. Uh Stacy Abrams ran for governor of Georgia. What party? Do you know? Are you aware?
▶ 1:17:37Yes, she's a Democrat. Democrat. Okay. And in 2022, she was also the Democratic candidate for governor of Georgia. I think that's I'm I'm sure it's true if you're saying. And uh she worked with, as we just mentioned, Rewearing America in 2023. uh power forward uh had a balance of do you know what the balance was in 2023 we mentioned up here earlier it was $100 and then and of course we know in 2020 are you also aware Stacy Abrams campaign for Joe Biden for president if you say so yeah she and she's
▶ 1:18:07a Democrat so Miss Yandel will gentleman yield uh no I don't have enough time I I would if you give me an extendel CEO uh of the national council Alo nonprofit. Yes. Uh how much did Joe Biden his administration give who Stacy Abrams campaigned for Joe Biden? How much did they give to uh Power Forward? So I'm so glad to have a chance to address the You know how much it was egregious mischaracterization. Okay. Was it $2 billion?
▶ 1:18:37I don't know the number. Okay. It was $2 billion. Okay. That's quite a bump from a cenote to two billion. How did uh the bid administration justify this gift? Do you know? So what happened the money? Thank you. So many of these organizations. Well, ma'am, do you know how I don't have the time? Okay. You don't know? No, I would love to answer the question. Was it for green? No. Was it Well, I'm trying to help you because I don't have enough time. Green energy grants. May I answer the question, sir? You got 10 seconds. Could you answer the question? Do you know what it was for?
▶ 1:19:04These were coalitions of longstanding organizations. Okay. So, you're not going to answer the question. It was for green energy grants. Once uh Stacy Abrams got that money, uh just so happens that two other uh nonprofits that she founded, Fair Count, do you have you ever heard of that one? So, I'm know my time with views separate from the administration.
▶ 1:19:31Please freeze the You're here to testify and answer questions and you will not answer the questions. You don't know what fair count is. I asked the question, do you know or not? No. Have you ever heard of it? You've never heard of it? Okay. It's a voter mobilization group for black voters that does nothing whatsoever to do with green energy.
▶ 1:19:49And do you know just so happens as a mystery of the universe, it's a coincidence that the president of that organization is a gal uh let's see where her name is. She her name is Janine Mlan. Her middle name is Abrams because that's her maiden name. She's Stacy Abrams sister. It's a miracle. You want to talk about incestuous.
▶ 1:20:15I mean, uh, the Tide Center also, uh, was running an organization, uh, called Southern Economic Advancement Project. They got money as well, and they fund a lot of Hamas protest groups across the country. So, this is incestuous, Madam Chair. It's back dealing, moneyaundering from nonprofits.
▶ 1:20:37Everyone up on this diet supports true charitable nonprofits, not political nonprofits or basically government organizations because it's funneling money into the pockets of Democratic activists, nothing more. Case in point, Miss Yentle, what is your total annual compensation? I don't see how that's relevant, but if you're interested, it's public information, which is evidence of the accountability and transparency that nonprofits adhere to. Yes. Your predecessor made $583,000. I suspect you get something similar.
▶ 1:21:08I do not. So you don't. That is not salary. Okay. But that what your predecessor was because as you said it's publicly traded or publicly available information. Yes. When you were the president of the ironically national lowincome housing coalition, what was your annual compensation? That's not quite right. But would you like to? It was 399,000. salaries. It was 399,000. Was it not? No, it was not. That's what it says. You're under oath. I see that it says that.
▶ 1:21:38That was not my salary. Thank you. Okay. So, all right. Well, we'll check that out. Madam Chair, I yield back. I now recognize Mr. Garcia from California. Thank you, Madam Chair. Um, we're obviously here for another hearing, which is literally nothing to do with government efficiency. Uh, this committee of course has talked about fencing. Uh we've gone after foreign aid and now we're going after community nonprofits which actually help and support people.
▶ 1:22:03And our committee is doing all of this without ever once getting testimony from Elon Musk, the head of Doge, of which of course this committee is now named from and of course who's now apparently leaving the White House as well. Now, every Democrat on this subcommittee voted to subpoena Elon Musk. We could come here and testify and be accountable to Congress. But that was blocked by our Republican colleagues, which of course in of itself is irresponsible and outrageous.
▶ 1:22:28And you would think that Republicans on this committee would want Elon Musk to testify just as much as we do. Now, all our Republican colleagues might also want to ask Elon Musk about this message, which he actually just posted yesterday. Now, I'm going to read this message Elon Musk posted. It says, uh, "I'm sorry, but I just can't stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination.
▶ 1:22:56And I'll emphasize, shame on those who voted for it. You know, you did wrong. You know it. Now, this was actually just yesterday, he actually posted this, which pretty rough if you ask me. And on top of that, I I would have printed it out, but just 20 minutes ago, he posted another message that says, "Call your senator. Call your congressman. Bankrupting America is not okay. Kill the bill.
▶ 1:23:24And of course, we know the only people who voted for this bill are actually House Republicans, including every Republican in this room. All these Republicans here on this committee, they all voted for this bill that now Elon Musk is saying should be killed and is saying is awful. I actually agree with Elon Musk on this. It takes healthc care away from 13 million Americans. It cuts food for veterans and seniors. All to finance, of course, huge tax breaks for the wealthy.
▶ 1:23:52Now, it's also interesting because Chairwoman Green, I understand, now regrets voting for this bill as she mentioned yesterday. Is that correct, Chairwoman Green? Are you yielding me time? No, I'm just asking if you are you I think you say now you regret voting for the bill. Is that correct? The bill actually destroys what you guys voted for for the past four years.
▶ 1:24:14And I'm proud that to have voted for that bill to fund uh border actually illegals you guys let in chairwoman actually chairman yesterday you actually said that you regret actually voting for the bill. Um you posted after Elon's tweet that you didn't know certain provisions were in it and that you would have voted no if you had known and so obviously you didn't do a thorough review of the bill. Um and I'm not surprised of course that it Republicans in this Congress are now going back and forth on the bill. They voted for the bill. Now they want to oppose it.
▶ 1:24:44We don't know what to actually believe. And for instance, this is the same thing that's happening with other big programs like Social Security, which we know Elon Musk and Doge have actually talked and attacked constantly over and over again. We know how badly already customer service has been hurt. People are waiting in long lines at Social Security offices all because of these Doge efforts. Now, again, Chairwoman Green invited to testify today. One of our witnesses, and I think it's important to note this, uh Mr. Turner. Um, you're one of our witnesses today, an expert on economics and a bunch of other things. Not economics.
▶ 1:25:14Uh, Mr. Turner, you were invited to testify as an expert on government spending. This is your post. Is this correct? Did you post this, sir? Yes, sir. Okay. You called social security a Ponzi scheme, 100%. Which we know Elon Musk has also done. I'm glad you admitted it. Uh, Social Security is a government sponsored Ponzi scheme as as you said. Now, what about the second part though, sir?
▶ 1:25:36I should be able to keep 100% of my You can read the You could read the whole not watch government waste it giving$9 billion dollar giving$9 billion to climate time madam chairwoman. Thank you. Thank you sir. Uh a Ponzi scheme. And so I think it's interesting of course as one of our Republican witnesses is calling Social Security a Ponzi scheme and that's a person that we should be taking advice from here today. Without Social Security 22 million people would be pushed into poverty. that includes over 16 million seniors and nearly 1 million children.
▶ 1:26:07And in fact, Elon Musk has also said and agreed with you, sir, that this is a Ponzi scheme. I think it's ironic that you are one of our witnesses talking about efficiency when you you want to attack the single best program that we have to support people not just out of poverty, but across this country to uplift them, to ensure they can afford a decent life.
▶ 1:26:26We on this committee need to work every single day not just to protect Social Security, but to hold Republicans accountable for attacking Medicare, Medicaid, for attacking Social Security and the programs that we all depend on. With that, I yield back. Thank you. The gentleman yields. I now recognize Mr. Timmons from South Carolina. Thank you, Madam Chair. It's hard to remember why we're here given all the conversations we're having, but we're here because we have $37 trillion in debt and we run a $ 1.8 uh trillion dollar annual deficit.
▶ 1:26:55And we're here to seek out waste, fraud, and abuse, deliver on government efficiency, and try to write the fiscal ship of this country so we can have a country for another generation or two. So, we're doing great work. We had a hearing a couple weeks ago with NPR and PBS, and we made clear to the American people that those uh two entities were not deserving of taxpayer dollars because they were not doing their job. They were they were wildly biased. They were wildly biased. And because of that, they do not deserve taxpayer funds.
▶ 1:27:25So, we're uh going to vote next week to uh stop giving them money. And we're going along the same lines with with this hearing because the EPA handed out $27 billion in the the last year of the Biden administration. And it was done um really because they thought they're going to lose the election and they wanted to get out as quickly as possible.
▶ 1:27:48Biden appointees in the EPA specifically said that the people that were getting the money weren't really weren't deserving of that money and there were a lot of concerns there. Obviously, we have this conversation about one of the most egregious um which is uh power forward communities. We keep talking about it and madam chair I'd like to enter there 990 in for the record. Without objection, so ordered. So this is from 2023.
▶ 1:28:14This is a less than a year old entity and as we've talked again and again they had $100 in their account and then the EPA under the greenhouse gas reduction fund gave them $2 billion. Well, the funny thing is is they didn't give it all give it all to them. They wanted to get it all but the EPA said no. And so now we're in this lawsuit where City Bank has the vast majority of it and um we're going to get it back. And that's why we're here. We're going to pass legislation. This is the hearing to show why this is ridiculous.
▶ 1:28:44This is I would just say waste. Maybe you would call it fraud. I don't know. It's definitely an abuse. So this money is coming back and this is the hearing to then um warrant the the the recision and we're going to have a vote in a couple of weeks and that's what we're doing and that's why we're here because we cannot spend money on ridiculous policies. Mr. Turner, do you agree with me? Are we moving in the right direction here? Yes. And it's it's critical that we move in this direction. Thank you, sir. And this is just for the EPA. We haven't even gotten into the border security nonsense.
▶ 1:29:13I mean, the the the the invasion that was funded by taxpayer dollars over the last four years, the B administration intentionally and systematically incentivized people to come into this country without knowing any idea who they were. Well, and the best part is is they're they're making Americans get these ridiculous vaccines, which we're going to talk about in a couple of weeks, but they don't have any tests for whether the people the 20 million people they brought in this country are vaccinated.
▶ 1:29:38The the irony is just So, back to uh the issue at hand. Power forward communities should not have $2 billion. Mr. Walter, do you agree that it is a egregious waste of taxpayer dollars to give $2 billion to a a bunch of former Obama and Biden uh highlevel employees? Absolutely. I'll give you a better one.
▶ 1:30:05Do you think that they would have gotten this money if they were not the former HUD secretary, the former OM director, the special assistant to Obama, the the former Fanny May uh head for Obama? Do you think that if we just got a random group of Americans and said, "Hey, you want to go, you know, give uh clean energy appliances to reduce the carbon footprint of our country uh to to a bunch of poor people? Do you want to go do that? Do you want to apply and we'll give you $2 billion?" Mr.
▶ 1:30:32Walter, is there any world in which uh the EPA would have given a random group of people $2 billion? Not at all. And that is a critical part of the NGO sector in addition to the heroes who actually do charitable work. I'll give you one better, Mr. Turner. Should we um be giving billions of dollars to 501c3s that have zero other income? 35,000 51c3s have zero other income. They're all government income. Should we do that? No, sir.
▶ 1:30:59And if I may, the the the egregious thing here is that they are bypassing the Congress. If you want to give Stacy Abrams $2 billion, appropriate it, but they are using this process to bypass Congress because no one would put their name on a bill to give Stacy Absion. All right, I'm going to end with this.
▶ 1:31:14Uh, dozens dozens of 501c3s, taxexempt organizations, organizations that we feel are are pursuing some benevolent and uh a goal to improve the lives of Americans. Dozens of these 501c3s, their CEOs make more than $10 million a year in salary. We got to change this. I'd put that in the waste, the fraud, and the abuse category. and we need to pass a law to make that better.
▶ 1:31:44Thank you, Madam Chair. I yel back. You now recognize Miss Crockett from Texas. Thank you so much, Madam Chair. It is interesting that we're talking about bypassing Congress. It seems like that's all that um has happened actually this Congress. In fact, it's why we've had to spend so much time in courts. And thank God that we at least have one branch of government that has decided not to abdicate their duties and has decided that there are things such as, you know, empoundment.
▶ 1:32:09And so when Congress does make a decision or does sign something into law or has been signed into law by a president that you can't just bring in your good little friend who helped you get elected to the tune of 300 billion or 300 million dollars and say, "Hey guy, you get to do whatever you want to despite what these dulyeleed people have done." But I digress. But I am going to get back to Elon because Elon is looming over every single Doge hearing. You know why? Because that's supposedly what Elon was heading up.
▶ 1:32:38But now they don't want to talk about Elon cuz Elon now is a little upset. There's a family spat that's obviously going on and it is going to play out it seems like all over Twitter. But nevertheless, let's talk about some of the things that we should be talking about. And you know what? Every time I come in here, I I really do wonder what is the point. Like why are we here? Because it doesn't seem like we're doing efficiency, right? Like have we seen Elon? No. Have we seen anybody that works for Doge? No. but we're in the Doge subcommittee and we're talking to everybody but the Doge people.
▶ 1:33:08So to hear the comments about Stacy Abrams, it really got me going. And a lot of times when we come into this hearing room, it's all about politics and it it made me think that there was an issue most likely with Stacy because someone actually brought up the fact that Stacy has run for governor a couple of times and it seems like there's a gubanatorial race that's coming up in Georgia and nobody knows whether or not Stacy is going to run. So, why not muddy the water if we can to hopefully keep a strong black woman down? But again, I digress.
▶ 1:33:38So, let's talk about the things that we could be talking about um while we sit here in the Doge committee. It seems like we could be talking about um you know, things like efficiency or oversight. When announcing this hearing, the chairwoman stated the Doge subcommittee would quote continue bringing long overdue transparency and accountability to those who abuse tax dollars. But so far, this Congress, Republicans have focused their oversight responsibilities on things like defunding Big Bird.
▶ 1:34:04Um, as well as attacking, of course, trans kids because they're really the big threat that we have. Um, we could be talking about how the Trump administration is ignoring these court orders, deporting American citizens, or targeting members of Congress for prosecution, or how Trump signed an order deregulating the cryptocurrency industry just as his family launched a digital currency.
▶ 1:34:24We could be having a hearing on how Trump fired members of the National Labor Relations Board for bringing a suit against Elon Musk or how the Trump administration dismantled the Office of the Federal Contract Compliance while the office was investigating Tesla for alleged racial harassment or how Trump dropped lawsuits against numerous large companies after they donated to his inaugural fund.
▶ 1:34:47We could have a hearing on whether Trump violated the imalments clause when he not only it seemed like he asked for a $400 million jet from a foreign government. Trump has put a for sale sign on the lawn of the White House and has allowed wealthy donors to dictate how the government operates. That's what we should be having a hearing about.
▶ 1:35:07But nope, they're here attacking nonprofits that deliver food to seniors and disabled folk, provide child care and elder care for working families, job training for teens and shelter for the unhoused. The Republicans and their witnesses have accused nonprofits of being quote radical and quote addicted to government money. And listen, I try to find agreement where I can. So I am going to say that I absolutely do agree with that statement to a certain extent because there is a nonprofit by the name of the Heritage Foundation.
▶ 1:35:36And last time I checked, the Heritage Foundation, they are the authors of Project 2025. And we are living through the hell of project 2025 right now. And something tells me that that's a bit of a partisan thing because they said it was the conservative playbook. So, as far as I'm concerned, I don't know why we would ever look at the Heritage Foundation and think that it's anything but radical and quote addicted to government money potentially. So, Miss Yentle, before I do that, I'mma come to you because I want to make sure that I get these things on record.
▶ 1:36:07Um, I have a unanimous consent, Madam Chair. It says Donald Trump allegedly asked AIDS whether Elon Musk's Doge promises were all bull and then you know what the rest of it is. Unanimous consent. Without objection. Thank you so much. I have another one from CBS News. Despite Trump's promise cuts, US spent more than $200 billion more in the first 100 days than last year.
▶ 1:36:29Without objection, if some reason we focused on some efficiency, we may have more money to work towards this deficit that some of my colleagues say that they're concerned about. And I guess Miss Yento, I'mma run out of time because if we were going to focus on this deficit, then maybe you wouldn't have your own friends coming out and talking about how we're going to have to lift the debt ceiling $5 trillion because how else can we pay for the billionaires to keep more money in their pockets? Thank you. And I will yield. The gentle lady yields. And for the record, the Heritage Foundation receives no federal funding.
▶ 1:36:59I now recognize Mr. Burchett from Tennessee. Thank you, Chair Lady. I think the irony of all ironies here is that my our friends across the aisle keep bringing up Elon Musk and what a great person he is. And I guess about a week ago, they were out to kill him. So, this is um this is backwards day as always. Um Mr. Correctan. Um, Alexandrio Mayorcus served as the United States borders are for four years.
▶ 1:37:29What did he do before appointment? He's an attorney and he was on the board of uh, among other things, Hias, which is the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, which is one of the nonprofit groups that resettles refugees and was also involved in this uh, movement of illegal immigrants up through Latin America. Okay. Um, you think it's a good thing that Mayorca served at an NGO whose goal it was mass migrant resettlement in the US?
▶ 1:37:59Uh, well, I disagree with the goal obviously, but no, I think it was a because there's a kind of uh, you know, conflict of interest there. I mean he was essentially implementing in government policy and having these nonprofit groups like highest but many others sort of as proxies to promote the policies that the administration was trying to implement.
▶ 1:38:23Well, in 2021 alone this organization received over $40.9 million in grants from the Department of Health and Human Services um state and homeland security. Don't you think that is a direct conflict of interest? Uh yeah, in the sense that some of that was spent on migration causes. Yes, I I think so. And that probably was at least part of the reason that um the House impeached Secretary Morcus.
▶ 1:38:51I guess it's a little bit like a congressman becoming a lobbyist. Kind of. I guess nothing nothing personal against anybody here. That's all right. Well, none of us better be lobbyist or we need to go to jail. At what point do you believe humanit humanitarian aid um and assistance becomes material support for illegal activity?
▶ 1:39:12Uh I'm not sure I'd be able to draw kind of a specific line and say here's where it is, but at this scale there's simply no way that these organizations did not see themselves as part of a network to subvert US immigration law. You know, the occasional provision of, you know, water to somebody who's in real distress is one thing.
▶ 1:39:36Setting up a network, essentially a kind of a aid station network, a pipeline, South America, a pipeline from South America to the border is not something that you It's not comparable in any way. It's not just different in scale, it's different in kind. Yeah. myself and the chair lady, she is my co-sponsor on a bill to literally defund the Taliban. As it turns out, we're sending them close to $40 million a week.
▶ 1:40:02I have a State Department document that that was a classified document. It's become unclassified. That's we have given them close to $5 billion with a B. Although that's not big numbers here, I can assure you in East Tennessee that's a whole heck of a lot of money. Um, would you have any idea how many in any of y'all have any idea how many NOS's that we believe could be working out of Afghanistan right now? You may have a shot in the dark. No, I have no idea. I'm afraid. Sorry.
▶ 1:40:31Would you believe close to 1,000? 1,000? Yes. And yet Congress in its infinite wisdom has taken almost we're working on two years now to get this bill out and um get it to the Senate and get them to pass it. Uh to me it's it is criminal. It is criminal what these organizations are doing. $40 million a week to the Taliban. They uh throw gay folks off of They rape women and children.
▶ 1:41:02Then they stone the women after uh somehow it's their fault. I mean, these are godless creatures and we are funding them with our tax dollars. And Americans, I believe, are getting rich off of it.
▶ 1:41:15I believe that some of the money is flowing back here through some of these NOS's and I would sure like to u see that paper paper trail solidified in my mind so I could point to it and if it's a member of Congress again they need to be led out of here in handcuffs.
▶ 1:41:35I want to thank do any of you like to comment on any of that kind of I would like to say sir that nonprofit organizations if they are working in Afghanistan it's to meet the tremendous humanitarian needs that I can assure you that ma'am I think conflating nonprofits with the Taliban is deeply dangerous well they actually ma'am they actually take a cut off of everything that goes through there just like the mob would there's three major banks and they get their money off it's been documented by government officials and I've run out out of time.
▶ 1:42:05Chairlady, I yield nothing back to you. Thank you, Mr. Burchett. Honored to be a co-sponsor of your defund the Taliban bill. I now recognize Mr. Moscowitz from Florida for 5 minutes. Uh thank you, Madame Chairwoman, for allowing me to wave on to today's committee under the rules of the oversight committee. I appreciate it as I tried to wave on to a previous meeting and and was barred. So, I do appreciate um you allowing me to attend today.
▶ 1:42:31Uh, you know, I was the first Democrat member to join the Doge caucus in Congress. Took a lot of crap for it, by the way. Um, and I did it for the right reason, cuz I thought government can get smaller, government can save money, and government can be more efficient. That polls in the 80s, most Americans know that. Uh, and I thought we were really interested in the E part of Doge, efficiency. Okay.
▶ 1:42:57But ask yourself, what have we made more efficient in the six months that Doge has been around? Yeah, there are things we have found that shouldn't exist. But name a department, name a system, name a service that this committee or the caucus or Elon has made more efficient. They said they were going to find a trillion dollars. They fell 85% short.
▶ 1:43:24Look, government is inefficient, but the Doge caucus and process was like, "Hold my beer. Let's let me show you what inefficiency really looks like." Okay, the Doge caucus hasn't met in months. It had two meetings. Congress wasn't involved at all in the process in the executive branch. Elon's gone. The effort's dead. Buried rigamortis is setting in. I feel sorry, ill talking of the dead. I shouldn't do that.
▶ 1:43:52Um, but I seriously, the Newark airport that that that is the key example for the American people. You want to talk about how did we make government more efficient? We didn't. We made government the Newark airport. And and by the way, now that the national divorce is happening with with Elon Musk, and I'm a child of divorce, okay? I mean, who's going to get big balls? I'm worried about him in the divorce. the children always get caught in the middle, right?
▶ 1:44:22And so I just, you know, if he's out there, I just want him to know we're we're rooting for him. U certainly we've not made FEMA more efficient. The administrator apparently doesn't know there's a hurricane season. Wait till he finds out there's five categories. We're going to blow his mind. Nothing has been made more efficient by Doge. No new technology in any of these departments. No lower costs. Hasn't happened, right? We promised to tackle the national deficit and debt. They haven't done that.
▶ 1:44:50They've made it worse by the big bloated abomination bill. Okay? I mean, Elon has turned on them, but he's telling the truth. The bill will add to the deficit and it will add to the debt. And so, listen, I I ask my colleagues, point to me one thing we've made more efficient. If you want to drop the E from Doge, because we've not done efficiency, that's fine. We can rename it. We can always rebrand. They're great at that.
▶ 1:45:21But nothing has been made more efficient. Here are the wins for congressional Republicans. You ready? They're going to do a $9 billion recision bill. Okay? Which they're going to get rid of Elmo, which the American people were clamoring for. Okay? And but they're going to add $2.4 trillion to the debt. 9 billion verse 2.4 trillion. And then they want us to cheer for them and give them a trophy like they're a 5-year-old at a soccer game. Everyone gets a trophy for their participation. Okay.
▶ 1:45:50By the way, these things I'm bringing up, Republicans themselves, including the chairwoman, have expressed their frustration that Congress has not codified anything at all. And so, look, it's interesting. Elon just retweeted this. When are we going to flatten the curve? It's fascinating. We're we're using COVID graphics and COVID slogans. This is the debt. This isn't COVID cases. Okay.
▶ 1:46:18And yet my Republican colleagues who have always talked about the debt and deficit. I I went out I bought the debt clock that Thomas Massie wears. $99 by the way. I don't know if that's a great deal, but you know, like two hour battery life. He told me you got to like if you dim the screen it'll last a little longer. Wow. It's still going up. doesn't seem like these Doge cuts, right, or this recision bill have handled anything with a debt or deficit.
▶ 1:46:46And so, yeah, look, yeah, Elon is we we love dark Elon now. Oh, yeah. This is this is interesting times, right? And Republicans will say, "Oh, wait. He was a he was a patriot. He left his companies. He was doing the right thing." That's what they said for six months. Now, they're saying, "Well, he's just mad because he's losing his EV credits. He didn't get his Starlink thing. They got rid of his NASA Okay, look. We got to do this together, guys, on a bipartisan basis to tackle the debt.
▶ 1:47:12I asked the speaker to put a budget commission together to get Democrats and Republicans on a bipartisan basis to tackle the debt, but that bill should die. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman. The gentleman times expired. I now recognize Mr. Berles from Thank you, Chairwoman, and thank you to our witnesses for being here.
▶ 1:47:29I just want to remind people there's a huge difference between money that an individual voluntarily gives to a nonprofit or charity and the money that is that is forcibly taken from taxpayers and funneled through this town into into a nonprofit or charity. There is a huge difference. Correct, Mr. Walter? Absolutely, Mr. Cretor. Yes, of course, Mr. Turner.
▶ 1:47:59Yes. And Miss Yentle, wouldn't you agree there's a huge difference? There's a difference. Sure. There's a difference in accounting and auditing and there is. Thank you. Thank you. I'm going to get my time back here. It's a simple So here with that being said, the problem that I it doesn't seem like anyone is recognizing is that we forcibly took money from taxpayers and then these groups then then it was appropriated through the Biden administration billions
▶ 1:48:29billions of taxpayer dollars to organizations that were stood up overnight. Organizations that didn't have a long-standing history. These were not nonprofits. For example, the a the investig free press investigation revealed that of the 27 billion dollars was granted to the AP through the EPA, 20 billion went out the door to eight nonprofit groups um right after Biden lost the election. 20 billion shoved out the door immediately.
▶ 1:49:00Several of them were formed that year in August of or since August of that year. So, Mr. Walter, did your organization do you guys get billions of dollars when Republicans are in charge? We have never taken a penny from any level of government across four decades of existence. Mr. Turner. Sir, if I got $2 billion from the taxpayers, I'd be in jail right now. Mr.
▶ 1:49:28Cororan, we have had contracts in the past with the Census Bureau and the Justice Department, but nobody's given us $2 billion. Uh if you know anybody who's in the market for that, I'm uh give them my phone number. Yeah. So I think that here here's the point to the American people. When the Republicans are in charge, we're not doing out your money to our friends and our family. We're not raiding the coffers. We're not putting America into more debt and more debt and more debt to fund these nonprofits.
▶ 1:49:58Look, Mr. Walter, if somebody wants to give to Stacy Abrams new venture, her nonprofit, they can do that, right? She could stand up a nonprofit. Absolutely. But the question is, Mr. Cororan, nobody wants to, nobody wants to open up their checkbook, right? I wish. Uh, yeah, I've been working on that.
▶ 1:50:18And that's the very reason why they come to this town is to convince lawmakers, their friends, their family member, their ally to write a check that no one in the private sector would want to write for for an effort that no one really would want to want to believe in. Um Mr. Turner, is it true that the Biden's senior climate policy adviser Jai Wise directed $5 billion to a coalition for green capital? Yes.
▶ 1:50:48And let's point out she worked for the Coalition for Green Capital, right? She previously worked for them. Yes. So she sent money to the organization that she billion. Is that not blatant corruption, Mr. Turner? And not only that, sir, $5 billion is very difficult to spend. $5 billion is an absurd amount of money. We heard a congresswoman talk about the jet that President Trump got. That was $400 million. This is $5 billion.
▶ 1:51:18It's impossible to spend5 billion ethically. Yeah. To put that in context, I remember being in the state of Missouri and Missurrians at one point we spent whenever I was a lawmaker, we spent five billion for all the school districts in the state of Missouri. Okay. So, they funded every school district, the state funds. That was five billion. Um, how much money did the might did the Biden administration give specifically to Rewiring America Initiative where Mrs.
▶ 1:51:46Abrams was brought on as a senior counsel? Approximately $2 billion. So, let me get this straight. Progressives loyalists like Abrams and other senior admin officials left the admin and feathered their nest on their way out with with our taxpayer dollars. Correct. Correct. Thank you, Madam Chair. I yield back. The gentleman yields. I now recognize Miss Presley from Massachusetts.
▶ 1:52:17Thank you to our witnesses for being here today. What we are witnessing from Occupant Trump, his administration, and Republicans at large is not governance. It is a targeted, dangerous assault on the independence of our nonprofit organizations. We've seen these attacks take many forms, perhaps most visibly in my own district, the Massachusetts 7th.
▶ 1:52:41As the administration continues its unlawful campaign against Harvard University, Trump has threatened to revoke Harvard's taxexempt status, freeze billions in federal funding for scientific research to save lives, might I add, and publicly vilify students and faculty, all part and parcel of his attacks on education. But let me make it plain, this isn't just about Harvard, and it's definitely not about government efficiency, the name of this subcommittee.
▶ 1:53:09This is about Trump and Republicans punishing people who disagree with them. It is about attacking nonprofits of all sizes that serve the vulnerable and marginalized and stand in the gap for our communities. It's about trying to intimidate every charity and nonprofit in this country and spark a fear that if you speak up, if you do something the Republicans don't like, you could be next.
▶ 1:53:34a hospital that provides abortion care, a local food pantry that feeds immigrants, or an advocacy group that fights for civil rights. Donald Trump is weaponizing our tax laws to attack nonprofits at the same time he is pushing for tax cuts for Elon Musk and billionaires. Miss Yintel, can the president or executive branch legally revoke a nonprofit's taxexempt status simply because it disagrees with that organization's lawful speech or mission?
▶ 1:54:04They can't. The statute is very clear that that is illegal. Thank you. Republicans think the answer is yes, but that would mean every nonprofit in America is just one tweet away from being targeted by the federal government. I'm proud that in the Massachusetts 7th, community- based organizations are speaking up and fighting back against Republican attacks. And I know they are doing it at risk of serious threat. Miss Yensel, can you make plain what are the consequences to charities and nonprofits losing taxexempt status?
▶ 1:54:35Well, tax exempt status is given to nonprofit organizations that do essential work to meet needs in their local communities in exchange for significant transparency and accountability. And if nonprofit organizations lose their tax exempt status, it could create significant challenges for them to be able to do their work related to how and where they get their funding. And it could cause them to have to shut down their work altogether.
▶ 1:55:03their work which is to the betterment of us all to the collective our shared constituents. Yes. Very good. Let's put this in perspective. Trump is firing government workers that administer programs like Head Start and Social Security while also attacking nonprofits that provide resources and supports to vulnerable populations. Trump and his Republican cult do not care about helping people who are struggling. Instead, they want to make them suffer more.
▶ 1:55:30Now, before I yield back, let me ask the Republican witnesses if you all think Trump is right for revoking tax exempt status for nonprofits for their political views. Raise your hand then if you think the Heritage Foundation, who wrote Project 2025, should also lose their tax exempt status. Show show of hands. By the logic, I'm not aware of any nonprofit that's had its uh status revoked.
▶ 1:55:57Again, the question that I'm posing is, would you please raise your hand if you think the Heritage Foundation, who wrote Project 2025, should also lose their tax exempt status? Show of hands. It's a perfectly reasonable uh speech by nonprofit. So, none of you, none of you, the shame and the sham of it all.
▶ 1:56:22Before I yield back, Miss Yentel, I know that um you have uh been uh heranged intensely uh throughout today's proceedings. Is there anything that you would like to uh set the record straight on or respond to uh in my remaining time? Thank you, Congresswoman.
▶ 1:56:38I would like to use the remaining time to remind us all and every member of this committee of the vital essential work that nonprofit organizations do in each of your communities for your constituents and the work that we do to support them in that work. Nonprofit organizations are local. They are transparent and accountable. They are nonpartisan by law and in practice. and they do essential work to meet the needs of all of your communities and all Americans. Thank you.
▶ 1:57:09Thank you. I yield back. The gentle lady yields. I now recognize Mr. Gil from Texas. Thank you, Madam Chair for holding this hearing. Um I'd like to begin with with Miss Yentel. Um you've written a lot about anti-racism and white fragility and and things like that. Um do you believe that President Trump is a racist? I don't believe that's relevant to this hearing. Do you believe that he is? I I'm not here to discuss my personal beliefs. I'm here to speak about the important work. You've tweeted that he's a vile, despicable racist.
▶ 1:57:40Do you believe that much of his housing policy was racist during his first term? I'm here to talk about the vital work that nonprofit do throughout our country. It's explicitly racist and deeply harmful. Is that right? I I don't have the tweet in front of me. I I've got it right here. You did tweet that. Um, you tweeted that on September 25th, 2020. You said it's explicitly racist and deeply harmful. Do you know who President Trump's uh Secretary of Housing and Urban Development was during his first term?
▶ 1:58:10Yes. Who is it? Who was it? It was Secretary Carson. Is Ben Carson. Do you believe that Ben Carson is racist or a white supremacist? With all due respect, sir, I am not here to talk about former HUD secretaries. I'm here to talk about the extensive nonprofits do in your district and throughout the country. Okay, we we can move on then if if you want to answer the question. Are are you a racist? With all due respect, sir, I'm here to talk about the essential work that nonprofits do. Excuse me. That's a very simple question. Yes or no question.
▶ 1:58:40Are you a racist? I'm I'm not a racist. You're not a racist. Um, particularly interesting because according to one of your uh affiliate charities um under your nonprofit umbrella, denial of racism constitutes covert white supremacy. Are you a covert white supremacist? Sir, I'm here to talk about the essential work that nonprofits do. Are you a covert white supremacist? Can I talk about the work that nonprofits do?
▶ 1:59:07I'm asking you if you're a covert white supremacist, which according to uh one of your own organizations, again, denial of racism constitutes covert white supremacy. Would you like to answer the question? I I I don't know what the question is. So you So you refuse to answer whether you are a covert white supremacist. I am here to talk about the essential work that nonprofits do. If you'd like to ask me a question, I am utterly dumbfounded.
▶ 1:59:34You will you are on record right now and you will not say that you are not a covert white supremacist. I don't have a definition in front of me. I haven't looked at the definition. I'm not going to answer a question about my personal I'm here to talk about the work nonprofit organization. No, I I I want to I want to give you one more chance to do this. Are you a covert white supremacist? Why are we so off track from the No, I'm asking you I'm asking you a very straightforward question. I've heard your question. Thank you, sir.
▶ 2:00:03And and you're not going to answer whether you are a covert white supremacist. I would like to answer questions about the work this nonprofit organization. Thank you. That's that that is really really astounding. I can answer very directly that I am not a covert white supremacist and I I imagine all of my colleagues can as well. Um I I think you ought to re-evaluate what you're doing in the nonprofit sector. Uh if you can't answer that in a straightforward way, that is astounding. Let me ask you another question.
▶ 2:00:31Do you believe that it's appropriate to host and promote LGBTQ plus meetups for I am here to support the vital work of nonprofits and I will say to oppose the federal government targeting groups. My question is, do you believe it's appropriate to host and promote LGBT plus Q LGBTQ plus meetups for 9year-olds? I believe that because one of your affiliate nonprofits does do that. Organizations that have views different from its own. That is wrong.
▶ 2:01:01Whatever party is in control, whatever administration, I think it I think a lot of this is wrong. Do you think that it's appropriate for young children to use gender transition paraphernalia? I I because one of your affiliated nonprofit organizations gives bras, binders, breast forms, nipples. I'm not even going to repeat this because it's so disgusting for children of all ages. Preaching decorum and attacking the witness. Can we I'm not attacking the witness.
▶ 2:01:31I'm I'm simply asking a straightforward question. Sir, uh, Mr. Gil, I'll be extending your time. You've been interrupted. Thank you. Thank you. Um, do you believe that art exploration camps for transgender and gender diverse youth of the age of 11 is normal? We support the vital work of nonprofit organizations and oppose the federal government opposing. So, so you refuse to answer any of these questions? You refuse to even answer the question of whether you are a covert white supremacist.
▶ 2:02:01I'm not here to answer questions about my personal views or my personal Is that because you don't want to disclose whether you're a covert white supremacist? I'm here to talk about the I'm giving you a chance to tell the world that you were not a covert white supremacist. Will you do that? I'll pass on your chance. You'll pass on that. Thank you, sir. That is astounding. That is really astounding.
▶ 2:02:22Um, you're a a radical far-left activist and you're masquerading as somebody promoting non nonprofit uh nonpartisan institutions and you will not even tell this committee that you are not a covertw white supremacist. That's astounding. I yield my time back. The gentleman yields. Witnesses are reminded you're under oath uh and you're here to answer questions to the committee. Uh I now recognize Mr. Khazar from Texas for five minutes.
▶ 2:02:54Chairwoman Green, uh you and my Republican colleagues have called this hearing that is all about cutting off money to nonprofits for things that are quote contrary to the national interest. What we've heard here is my Republican colleagues going after nuns and priests that feed immigrants, going after nonprofits that do scary things like support our queer youth.
▶ 2:03:24It is astounding to me. Um, but we do have uh one nonprofit leader here, Mr. Creoran. Mr. Corean, you're the director of the Center for Immigration Studies, correct? Yes. And according to your organization's website, you do receive taxpayer funding or have from the Department of Justice and the Census Bureau. Is that Yeah, we did research contracts for them many years ago. Got it.
▶ 2:03:49And so you do have a taxpayerf funded uh nonprofit and your nonprofit, as we've discussed in committee before, has shared articles from Kevin McDonald whose work argues that Jewish people alleged by him are genetically driven to destroy Western societies. Is that correct? We distributed no such article. But you did distribute work from this anti-semite. Correct.
▶ 2:04:16We distributed work all across the spectrum from New York Times to anyone else. Got it. Okay. Your organization has also circulated an article by Holocaust denier John Friend. Is that correct? We said last time we were in a hearing that Yes, you have. We've distributed no articles about Holocaust denial. Obviously, but you have from Holocaust denier John Friend. I I I don't know, but I assume so. Yeah. Your your website right here does talk about that. Yeah. So, I have a yes or no question.
▶ 2:04:45is promoting the work of Holocaust deniers and anti-semmites contrary to the national interest. Promoting Holocaust denial and what have you is contrary to the national interest. That's why we haven't done it. But you have promoted the work of Holocaust deniers. Uh there were there were several examples. We've also promoted the work of open borders people uh in that broad that effort to present a broad range of views. Absolutely. and we don't endorse one way or the other.
▶ 2:05:14So, so, so you have promoted the work of Holocaust deniers, but have you received anything from Doge asking whether they want to cut your funding? Have Republicans called you in to ask about your nonprofit and said, "Hey, we don't like that you've promoted the work of Holocaust deniers." Have you had any funding cut by Doge uh or we don't we don't get any funding to be cut? But you have received Department of Justice funding decades ago. Yes. Yeah.
▶ 2:05:44And so look, let me just be real clear here. This hearing is not about taking on nonprofits that are going quote against the national interest or who are quote extreme. This is all about trying to shut down nonprofits who might share political views that are different from that of the president of the United States.
▶ 2:06:09This hearing, they're going after organizations they call radical because they're kind to kids that are having trouble in school, kind to kids that are trying to figure out who they are in the world. They're going after nonprofits. you, sir, in your nonprofit are saying that the radical people are the priests and nuns that feed the hungry, the nonprofit organizations that, yeah, give shelter to immigrants that I understand your center of immigration studies does not like uh immigration very much.
▶ 2:06:39But let me tell you, the radical folks aren't the folks out there doing good. The radical folks that you might disagree with their version of the good, but the radical folks are the people that in your face come to this committee hearing and are sharing through their websites, through their list serves articles by Holocaust deniers. And you're saying, "Yeah, we didn't share the Holocaust denying articles, but we shared some of his other stuff." I'll make my last point here clear. I'm I represent Texas.
▶ 2:07:10Um, I have long-standing ties to the city of El Paso where in 2019 23 people were murdered um at a Walmart. Um, the murderer said quote, "It was based on the Hispanic invasion of Texas." And after the shooting, um, Mr. Cororan, you said that the manifesto was quote, "remarkably well written." Can you tell us which part of his manifesto was remarkably well written?
▶ 2:07:34What I meant by that was for that it was seemed improbable for a nutcase case like that to have written something that was relatively at least grammatically correct. That was my point. Look, folks here on this committee are trying to shut down nonprofits because they disagree with them. You're a nonprofit and you, sir, saying that the El Paso shooter had a manifesto. The gentleman's time has gentle goes around comes around.
▶ 2:08:03The gentleman's time has expired. I now recognize Mr. Jack from Georgia for five minutes. I just want to make clear. Thank you, Madam Chair. As one of two Georgians on this committee, yourself included, Madam Chair, I'd like to first rebut the charge from one of our Democrat colleagues that we are today trying to politically tear down Stacy Abrams.
▶ 2:08:24to remind our Democrat colleagues, Madam Chair, a majority of Georgia voters have twice rejected Stacy Abrams in 2018 by 2% in 2022 by 8%. So there's no need for this committee to politically tear down Stacy Abrams when the people of Georgia already have. But this committee is focused on eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse across our government. And again, the purpose of our hearing today is to talk about waste, fraud, and abuse among non-governmental organizations or nonprofits.
▶ 2:08:53And if I could start, Miss Yentel, as the president and CEO of the National Council of Nonprofits, is it fair to characterize your organization as an informed source of data for nonprofits and NOS's? Sorry. Yes, sir. And how many just an estimate, how many NOS's receive a majority of their money from the government as opposed to citizens?
▶ 2:09:15To the best of your knowledge, the latest number I saw is that about 27% of nonprofit organizations receive federal funding. Does it concern you at all that a non-governmental organization is receiving a majority of its funding from the government? Well, I didn't say it was the majority. I I'm Let me correct myself. Thank you. 27% of nonprofit organizations receive some of their funding from the federal government. Uh it doesn't concern me.
▶ 2:09:40No, the the federal government appropriates funds to be used for specific purposes and they often partner with nonprofit organizations who are best equipped and able to meet local needs with those with that funding. Mr. Walter, in your your opening uh statement and your written testimony as well, I think you addressed this. Could you inform and expound upon the issue that I see and I like think you see that a non-governmental organization is receiving a majority of its funding from the government?
▶ 2:10:08to me that's totally contrary to the title of the organization itself. Sure. And the statistic uh from Candid which is a nonprofit uh uh group is about 35,000 receive the majority um of their funding from government and that is obviously a dangerous thing. Now some of them may do good work but of course as everybody in Washington DC knows if you're getting federal dollars uh you deserve a lot of scrutiny.
▶ 2:10:34the idea that they should just be passed over without scrutiny is is quite unreasonable without I'm sorry. I'm going to continue on my line of question. Thank you. Um Mr. Kakorian, I want to also give you an opportunity just to affirm for the record. I know uh one of our Democrat colleagues tried to suggest that uh you're immune from Doge cuts. I I heard you loud and clear though the funding and the contracts with Department of Justice and uh the Census Bureau were to your point decades ago. You're not receiving government funding right now. No. No. Thank Thank you.
▶ 2:11:05Um, so earlier today, Mr. Cororan, we had the administrator of the Small Business Administration testify before the Small Business Committee. And the reason I mentioned that is one of the issues we talked about was trying to turn off and eliminate the incentive structure that rewarded illegal immigration over the last four years under Joe Biden's administration. Specifically, we talked about relocating small business offices from sanctuary cities or sanctuary jurisdictions to jurisdictions that honor federal law enforcement law and immigration law.
▶ 2:11:33And I I I bring that up because I'd love for you in these last 90 seconds to walk us through what happened these last four years. If you want to look at the incentive structure that rewarded illegal immigration, I suspect you could look no further than a lot of nonprofits that operated under our southern border. So would welcome thoughts for you in closing in this hearing. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, the the whole point of enforcing immigration law is to make it impractical to live here as an illegal immigrant. In other words, it's not even just not rewarding.
▶ 2:12:01Obviously, it's that, but it's also to make it difficult. It's why you shouldn't get driver's licenses for illegal immigrants, that sort of thing. And so, what nonprofit groups during the previous administration did, and frankly, even before that, was to make it practical, to make it easier for illegal immigrants to live here illegally, uh thereby kind of undoing any deterrent effect or any um incentive to self-epport to go home.
▶ 2:12:27And so, um, that's one of the things that we need to reverse is to not just take away the incentives, but to make it impractical to remain here so that people will take the administration up on its offer of a free plane ticket home and $1,000 when you get home. There has to be some reason you want to do that. What a lot of nonprofit groups have done is is take away the incentive to go home. And that needs to change. And by the way, 70 to 75% of Americans agree.
▶ 2:12:56and support President Trump's immigration policies, House Republicans border priorities. Um, just closing number from you and statistic. Can you estimate over the last four years how many how much taxpayer money was funding uh to your point the incentive structure we're trying to eliminate today? I wish I had a number, but it's all over the it's billions, but I have no idea how much exactly. Billions of dollars. With that, Madam Chair, I yield. The gentleman yields. I now recognize Mr. Gosar from Arizona. Ma'am, excuse me. May I ask a question first before the congressman speaks?
▶ 2:13:25I I apologize for the rare point of order. I wasn't able to ask Mr. Casar before he ran out the room, but he was looking at the witnesses talking about a murderer and said, "What goes around comes around." And I don't know what that comment meant. I don't have the luxury of Capitol Hill police to protect me. In the climate space, we got a lot of death threats. We got a lot of hate uh the climate environmental groups of the original violence. I just don't know what goes around comes around. Mr. Mr. Turner will will address the you feeling threatened as soon as the hearing is ended.
▶ 2:13:55Thank you very much. Thank you, ma'am. Yep. Mr. Gosar is recognized for five minutes. Thank you, Madam Chairman. Thank for allowing me to sit on. President Trump has worked tirelessly to weed out the waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars by non-governmental organizations or NOS. And my home state of Arizona is at the forefront of these issues where NOS's are shipping illegal aliens into the United States. Question for each one of you.
▶ 2:14:21Have you heard of the United Nations Resolution 1996-31 titled Consultive Relationship between the United Nations and non-government organizations? Mr. Walter. Uh, I'm sorry. No. How about you, Mr. No, I have not. How about your sir? How about you, Mr. Anel? No. Well, I'm going to give you some cliff notes on this one. Okay.
▶ 2:14:46It states that the UN gives m if the UN gives money to an NGO that also receives voluntary contributions. The NGO must must disclose the sources of these donations and explain why it's accepted for such a donation. If the UN can do it, why can't we? Now, I'm going somewhere here. In fact, I will read one of the sentences in this UN resolution.
▶ 2:15:12Any financial contribution or other support direct or indirect from a government to the organization shall be openly declared to the committee through the secretary general and fully recorded in the financial and other records of the organization and shall be devoted to purposes in accordance with the aims of the United Nations. Ho ho wow this only time I agree with the United Nations. May I submit this for the record please? Without objection. So ordered.
▶ 2:15:39My legislation HR 382841 the putting trust and transparency act and I think the president had something along these same lines requires requires NOS's that receive even a dollar of federal money funding to disclose their extravagant donors just like the UN does. Wow, what concept. It applies to all NOS's. You don't have to take federal money, but when you do, you got to you have to pay the piper.
▶ 2:16:05Now, if you're an NGO that advocates advocates for limited government but accepts federal dollars, you're a sock pupp sock puppet for your donors. There should be zero taxpayer advocacy. Mr. Turner, you talked about the government slush funds and transparency in your testimony. We know many leaders of these NOS's are use both public and private funding for their own political grift. Question, what do leaders have to personally gain by felicing American tax dollars?
▶ 2:16:34uh the salaries, sir, and this that's why this whole conversation of how these are uh puppy raising organizations and they give food to the homeless. This is all a bunch of crap. These are organizations that fund political democrats with enormous salaries, pay their consultants that then give donations to political democrats, and that's why it's billions of dollars hidden under justice, climate, whatever you want to call it. Mr. Aoran, is it illegal to aid in a bet in illegal alien? It is indeed.
▶ 2:17:02And the question is uh the real question is what does aiding and abetting mean? And it has not not been defined broadly. I want to interrupt you. I want to interrupt you. Aiding and abetting on on a I guess could be define that. But when you're going into other countries and showing people the way here and then finding out that you can give them uh the luxury of things off of uh American personals. That's that's that would be a betting, wouldn't you say? It sure seems to me to me. Yes, it does.
▶ 2:17:32Well, there's a reason why I want this because if you thought the USA ID was riddled with with fraud, wait till you see these NOS's. I I I love some what what Miss Gentel was saying, you know, my my uh restore my Habitat for Humanity Habitat for Humanity. I love that store. I love that store because they're building something. They're trying to put stuff to use and recycle it.
▶ 2:18:00But I got this perception over here from a this lady that everything is hunky dory. It's not. You can't violate the United States laws. You can't. Oh, I forgot. Yes, you can. You can violate any law you want to because we're we're we're we're void of a sheriff. Well, we were void of a sheriff last for the last four years. We did. But see, we want to see this transparency because we want to have those numbers for the American public. Mr.
▶ 2:18:29Walter, are you scared of the American public for sunlight? Not remotely. Oh, see, that's why I have another bill and it's called the Lasso Act. It takes Imagine this. I heard all our our f friends from the other side of the aisle say that uh we're attacking social security. Wouldn't it be interesting that I took 10% of all the public lands, all the revenues coming off of public lands and off of our oceans and I put it in social security trust fund. Would that surprise you, Mr. Walter? Uh, possibly. Hi, Mr. Corean.
▶ 2:19:00Um, it's not my area. I don't know. I'm not familiar with it. I'm putting it in there. Does it look like I'm cutting social security? Right. No, it doesn't matter. How about you, Mr. Turner? No. Well, Madam Chair, I got to tell you, it's this is too much fun. I got to let you get yield back. The gentleman yields. In closing, I want to thank our witness witnesses once again for their testimony today. I now yield to ranking member Stanbury for closing remarks. All right. Thank you, Madame Chairwoman.
▶ 2:19:29I want to start by saying this is not normal. I say this a lot, but today is certainly no exception because while we were sitting here, while we were sitting here, Mr. Elon Musk began tweeting again. He says, "Call your senator. Call your congressman. Bankrupting America is not okay. Kill the bill in all caps." Nothing is normal right now.
▶ 2:19:55attacking federal agencies and dismantling vital services, firing thousands of federal workers and shattering their lives, stealing your private data illegally and downloading it and using it on AI systems, letting children starve on the other side of the world while gutting vital public health programs. Zeroing out funding for public media.
▶ 2:20:23None of these things are normal and certainly attacking community organizations and vital nonprofits that serve the public good is not normal. But in addition to that, it's also not legal.
▶ 2:20:39And that is why there are over 200 federal court cases currently in front of the federal court right now, including dozens of injunctions and restraining orders against the Trump administration for their lawless and illegal activities. Because not only is it not normal, it is not legal. For months, the Trump administration has been threatening that they will undermine the nonprofit status of nonprofits that they don't like.
▶ 2:21:07It's very clear that they've been searching for some sort of legal argument that will give them a path forward and they have yet to find it because it is not legal. The law is very clear. It is not legal. They cannot go after your IRS status. They cannot go after your nonprofit status. It is not legal.
▶ 2:21:31So, if you are a nonprofit in America and you are listening to this hearing and you are feeling frightened, scared, you've received a letter, you've received a threat, or you have been contacted by Doge or any federal official to audit or enter your nonprofit organization, know your rights. Contact a lawyer. Make sure you understand what your rights are and what you can do to protect your organization.
▶ 2:22:00Now, I understand that my friends across the aisle want to talk about corruption, waste, fraud, and abuse. I mean, this is the Doge subcommittee, but it is so bizarre to see the high level of gaslighting that happens every moment in this Congress. They want to talk about corruption and nonprofit organizations that do voter registration and help fight the climate crisis and help starving children.
▶ 2:22:25But they won't even acknowledge that Elon Musk, who just left the administration, gave himself billions of dollars in private contracts while serving in the federal government. that he himself changed out the communications infrastructure for multiple agencies, set himself on a path to get billions of dollars in private DoD contracts, and yes, he did download your data, and we will hold him accountable because
▶ 2:22:55no one is above the law, including the president. So, if we want to talk about corruption, why don't we talk about a president who launches a memecoin and takes hundreds of millions of dollars in payments from foreign governments laundered through his family business?
▶ 2:23:14How about we talk about a president who solicited a foreign government for a $400 million plane that he wants to keep privately through his presidential library afterwards? How about we talk about a president that wants to sell pardons for memecoins? You guys want to talk about corruption? Or we can talk about dark money and its influence on politics.
▶ 2:23:42Now, I understand that some of the witnesses felt a little exposed here today by having facts presented about what their organizations are, who funds them, and what they do. But the facts remain. The facts remain. Project 2025, which is a 900page document drafted by the Heritage Foundation and over a hundred organizations, including those represented here today, is the blueprint for Donald Trump's America.
▶ 2:24:11It is being executed by more than 70 administration officials including the director of the office of management and budget who is now executing doge and is being utilized to attack anyone that they disagree with politically or culturally. That is what this is all about. That is what this hearing is about. And we want all of you out there who are listening to know this is not normal. It is not legal. and we will fight it every step of the way.
▶ 2:24:41I yield back. I now recognize myself for closing remarks. There's a lot of things that aren't normal and that's using the power of the government to fund your friends and your family members and to employ uh former bureaucrats to enact policies that invade our country and hurt our energy, our American energy. Yeah, those things are not normal and that's why we're talking about them here today.
▶ 2:25:08As as we've heard here today, the American taxpayer dollars are being laundered through the revolving door of NOS's and Democrat officials. These pay-to-play schemes are so deeprooted in the system and are such welloiled machines and they must be dismantled immediately.
▶ 2:25:27To be clear, we support charitable NOS's that help Americans in times of need such as during the aftermath of wildfires in California and the hurricane in western North Carolina, Georgia, and eastern Tennessee. We do not support politically connected nos who rake in billions of federal tax dollars to serve the Democrat party and their friends and their priorities.
▶ 2:25:52We do not support Democrat officials creating slush funds, writing grants and contracts, and deciding who those funds go to, and then going to work at the same NGO that it just awarded those funds to. Yeah, that's not normal. That is the reality of what we are facing and what we face for the past four years. As our witnesses stated, these corrupt NOS do not serve the American people. They serve big government and the Democrat party.
▶ 2:26:22If the American people support their climate and other woke causes, they can choose to personally donate to these entities. They can pay for it themselves. The American people are the most generous people in the entire world. In 2023 alone, Americans privately donated over 557 billion of their own money.
▶ 2:26:50They should be the ones who decide where their money goes. They can choose if they want to donate to a nonprofit and which nonprofit. The American people are not just generous with their money, but they're generous with their time as well. In 2023, nearly 76 million Americans, almost 30% of Americans, formally volunteered through an organization. The government didn't make them do this. They did it on their own.
▶ 2:27:19The government didn't hold a gun to their head and make them volunteer. The government did not hold a gun to their head and make them donate their own money. They did it on their own. However, the government is forcing them to pay for things that they don't support and they don't want happening. The United States is 36 trillion in debt. In 2024, the government spent over 1.8 trillion more than it took it in.
▶ 2:27:48And in 2025, the interest in our debt is expected to exceed $1 trillion. Our government is broke. Our government is going bankrupt. Our government is not a charity for the left to use to launder money through to their friends and to former government employees. Notice this. This is extremely important. There's a difference what of what you heard on this committee today.
▶ 2:28:15Our Democrat colleagues believe taking money from the American people and forcing them to support the causes that they support is the right thing to do. They don't believe in the mission of this subcommittee which is doge which is delivering on government efficiency and that is a mission that has been created in this administration thankfully to President Trump and it is a mission that we are continuing here on this subcommittee on oversight and we're proud of it.
▶ 2:28:45As a matter of fact, we are delivering government efficiency and we are proud to let everyone know that we will be voting next week for actual Doge recision cuts that this committee held hearings on and that is producing results for the American people because most of the time in Congress all Congress does is to create more laws, create more regulations, and spend more of the American people's dollars.
▶ 2:29:11But right here on the Doge subcommittee, thankfully to the hard work of its members and staff, we are actually making a difference and we're going to be cutting government funding, government spending, government waste, fraud, and abuse. In closing, we are incredibly grateful to the Trump administration for directing all federal agencies to review all agency funding to NOS.
▶ 2:29:36These actions taken by the Trump administration will finally provide long overdue oversight over the revolving door of NGO corruption and we will continue our work here on the do subcommittee no matter how much pitching of tantrums that we hear from our Democrat colleagues. We're proud of what we're doing and we know the American people support it. Thank you.