Grassley Responds to Attack on State Department Holds

Statement

Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa today made the following statement in reaction to criticism from the Senate minority leader over Grassley's hold on 22 State Department nominees over the State Department's failure to respond thoroughly or at all to numerous inquiries beginning in 2013.

"My hold is on 22 nominees, not 600. I disclosed the reasons for my holds, as I always do, and in keeping with the disclosure policy on holds that I helped to enact. My staff has been working with the State Department to try to get the information I requested, including complete answers to inquiries from June 2013. Ironically, if the State Department had answered my questions then, we probably wouldn't be here today. The purpose of my questions then and now is the same: Is the State Department using personnel rules appropriately, is it appropriately policing potential conflicts of interest among special government employees, and are taxpayers well-served by how the State Department operates? Looking out for the public interest isn't a waste of time, and I'll keep at it regardless of misguided attacks on my motivations or mischaracterizations of my work."

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