Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz faced a grim and unwelcome reality at his February town hall: constituents expected him to actually do his job as chair of the House Oversight Committee.
After being asked why he wasn’t investigating Trump’s tax returns, the crowd began chanting “Do your job!” at the beleaguered congressman. This was most likely a reference to how Chaffetz, by his own admission, allowed his first meeting with Trump to be conducted on the president’s terms, who opened it by demanding that they not discuss oversight on any of his financial matters. Chaffetz has instead promised to continue his investigations on Hillary Clinton.
Chaffetz, who stepped into the chief oversight post in 2015, notably pledged last fall to conduct an endless string of inquiries into Hillary Clinton once she got elected.
“It’s a target-rich environment,” the Republican said in an interview in Salt Lake City’s suburbs. “Even before we get to Day One, we’ve got two years’ worth of material already lined up.”
But you know who Chaffetz hasn't viewed as "target-rich"? The guy who is running an administration that's presently the target of an FBI investigation. The guy whose web of financial ties has arguably raised more immediate ethics concerns than any president in U.S. history. As NPR reports:
How big is the jump in public contacts, such as calls, letters and emails [about Trump]? During the six months between October 2008 and March 2009, as the Obama presidency was taking shape, the [Office of Government Ethics] got 733 contacts.
During the October 2016 to March 2017 period, it got 39,105 contacts from citizens — an increase of 5,235 percent.
Perhaps not surprisingly, after President Obama ran one of the most transparent (and scandal-free) administrations in history, Trump's already scandal-ridden White House has closed the door on transparency. Trump's probably "never" ever going to release his tax returns—at least, not willingly. He's shut down the White House visitor logs, which weren't perfect but still revealed the names of some 6 million White House visitors during the Obama administration.
And perhaps most tellingly, every single revelation that has led to a resignation or recusal during Trump’s administration has come through the force of the press: now resigned national security adviser Michael Flynn along with Russia investigation recusals from Attorney General Jeff Sessions' and House Intelligence chair Devin Nunes. That doesn’t even touch media disclosures about team Trump’s ties to Russian officials during the campaign (e.g. Paul Manafort, Carter Page, Roger Stone).
If there's one thing this administration has proven, it's that Trump officials and associates definitely have things to hide and none of those things will be offered up freely.
That's the environment in which the news of Chaffetz's imminent departure comes. Questions abound about the real motivations of this young Republican pol whose ambition was at once as unbridled as it was unapologetic.
But motivations aside, one can't help but wonder how Chaffetz's newfound freedom of not seeking re-election will impact his Trump-era head-in-the-sand "oversight" routine. In a 2012 op-ed, Chaffetz opined about his lofty responsibilities as a member of the Oversight Committee:
Given the choice to serve on any committee on Capitol Hill, I sought Oversight and Government Reform because I believe holding government accountable is not optional. I campaigned on the issue. I strongly believe that Americans deserve to know what their tax dollars are paying for — regardless of which party is in power.
More importantly, powerful agencies and bureaucrats need to know their power is not unlimited. It must be checked. And I'm determined that our committee will continue to provide that check.
Chaffetz will have another year and a half to make good on those promises, “regardless of which party is in power.”
If ever there were a time to step up and "do your job," now would be it—in particular, for the sake of country over partisanship. Or Chaffetz can piddle away his remaining days overseeing a moment in history that's practically grabbing him by the throat and demanding scrutiny. Escaping that obligation will take the dogged commitment of a political Houdini.