Nancy Pelosi Unleashes a Democratic Wrecking Crew to Rain On Boehner’s Benghazi Parade

Nancy Pelosi didn’t just appoint Democrats to the Benghazi Select Committee. Leader Pelosi put together a Democratic wrecking crew.

In a press release, Democratic Leader Pelosi unveiled the five Democrats who will make up the rest of the Benghazi Select Committee:

Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD), Ranking Member, Committee on Oversight & Government Reform

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Adam Smith (D-WA), Ranking Member, Armed Services Committee

Adam B. Schiff (D-CA), Committee on Appropriations (Subcommittee on State & Foreign Operations), Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence

Linda T. Sánchez (D-CA), Committee on Ways and Means (Subcommittee on Oversight)

Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Armed Services Committee, Committee on Oversight & Government Reform

Rep. Cummmings has been debunking lies and calling out the misdeeds of Darrell Issa for the last couple of years. Cummings is sharp, and maybe the most skilled Democrat in the House when it comes to the art of debunking Republican lies in real time. As the ranking member of the Select Committee, Cummings will have the same task as House Republicans try to gin up a Benghazi scandal.

Rep. Cummings made it clear what he is going to bring to the table:

I feel we need someone in the room to defend the truth.

— Elijah E. Cummings (@RepCummings) May 21, 2014

Rep. Adam B. Smith has been outspoken about the millions of dollars and Pentagon manpower hours that has been wasted on the previous seven Republican led Benghazi investigations. Smith has called for the Republican witch hunt to stop, and he has been standing up against the strain that Republican theatrics have been placing on the Pentagon.

Rep. Adam B. Schiff has already denounced the Republican led Select Committee as a publicity stunt, and vocally called on Democrats to boycott the investigation. Rep. Schiff said, “There’s certainly an argument to be made for having a seat at the table. I come down on the side of not wanting to lend a partisan stunt more credibility than it deserves.”

Rep. Linda T. Sanchez gives Democrats on the Ways and Means Committee a voice on the panel, and Rep. Levin’s Ways and Means Democrats have been leading the charge and calling out Republicans for wasting time on things like Benghazi and the IRS while refusing to create jobs and extend unemployment benefits.

Rep. Tammy Duckworth has been in Congress since 2012. She is also one of the Democrats who walked out on one of Darrell Issa’s show trial Benghazi hearings last year. Duckworth is a former Black Hawk helicopter pilot, who will not allow Republicans to disrespect those who lost their lives in Benghazi with partisan stunts for political gain.

Leader Pelosi had a very deliberate strategy. The Democrats on this committee are experts. They know what they are talking about, and they know how to handle the Republican Benghazi lie machine. Pelosi has assembled a conspiracy theory wrecking crew who will be prepared to knock down the tired Republican lies and half truths about Benghazi.

It was a smart move for Pelosi to appoint these individuals to the committee. The risk of boycotting the panel, and giving Republicans an unchallenged platform was too big of a chance to take.

If Republicans think they are going to sit in front of the cameras and hysterically scream Benghazi for months, they are in for a rude awakening. The Benghazi committee just got a whole lot more interesting, because Democrats

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association