The House Oversight Committee has opened an investigation into Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and former Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry over his ties to private climate lobbyist organizations and his use of taxpayer money.
Republicans say Kerry had years of extensive — and expensive — private meetings with private climate organizations, paid for by taxpayers.
Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer, R-K.Y., warned that excessive private meetings violate government oversight and create conflicts of interest between the Biden administration and outside lobbyists.
In a February letter, Comer demanded documentation from Kerry’s special climate team – known as SPEC – including communications with outside green lobbyist groups, staff payroll records, and information on any ethical disclosures or restrictions.
The request covers materials spanning Kerry’s three years in the administration role spearheading national and international climate policy, which has included hiring over 40 staffers with a nearly $14 million budget.
Comer specifically alleges that frequent closed-door meetings among Kerry’s office and private sector climate investors inappropriately mix government policy formation with external special interests.
“Meetings with leftist environmental organizations, sometimes collectively addressed as the ‘Kitchen Cabinet,’ go far beyond normal briefings and raise questions regarding possible conflicts of interests involving SPEC staff’s ties to these groups regarding climate finance investments,” Comer said, according to Fox News.
“The State Department claims the ‘Kitchen Cabinet is an existing group of NGOs that sometimes asks SPEC to brief them… nothing unusual or below board.'”
“Documents received by the Committee illustrate that the coordination and briefings are anything but ordinary — a two-way street exists for the purposes of obtaining ‘off the record’ information, receiving climate finance consultation, and influencing U.S. foreign policy positions,” Comer said.
Republican critics pointed out that Kerry’s office hired major Democratic donors to write up plans for different public and private climate financing initiatives — a major potential conflict of interest.
“The Committee has learned these groups will go as far to hire independent consultants to provide funding opportunities designated for placement of U.S. taxpayer dollars — all while receiving preferential treatment from Envoy Kerry, the SPEC Office, and the State Department who distribute taxpayer dollars to fund their projects,” Comer said.
“SPEC staff — past or present — who consult outside groups regarding climate finance matters require heightened accountability for their ties to these groups. The Committee is troubled by the frequency and content of financial-related information discussed at ‘off the record’ meetings between the State Department, SPEC office, and outside groups considering that the Biden Administration has proposed $1 trillion in climate investments over the next 10 years,” he said.
Comer warned that such potential conflicts warrant fuller transparency.
In addition to the House investigation, conservative energy advocacy organization Power the Future has filed a lawsuit under public records statutes seeking visibility into the activities and operations of Kerry’s team given concerns about coordination with external partisan players on public dime.
A spokesman for the State Department recently said that “the State Department does not comment on congressional correspondence” when asked about the oversight investigation by The Washington Examiner.
Kerry has been expected to exit the special envoy post for a role with President Joe Biden’s 2024 reelection campaign.
John Podesta is slated to assume leadership on climate work going forward.
The Horn editorial team