Letter to Hon. Adam Schiff, Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence - Turner: Members will not agree to Schiff's request that they be tested prior to attending Intelligence Committee official event

Letter

Dear Chairman Schiff:

We are writing to inform you the following Members of the House Permanent Select Committee
on Intelligence will not submit to testing and your request to produce a negative COVID-19 test
prior to an upcoming official Committee function.

Your request comes at a time when the average American worker does not have access to timely
PCR or rapid antigen testing. Americans who are caregivers for elderly loved ones worry about
exposing their family members to COVID and do not have available testing options to protect
them. The Biden Administration has failed to live up to its promises to ensure COVID-19
testing is widely available to the public and did not prepare to respond to a surge due to variants
like Omicron. Your request that Members, who do not exhibit any symptoms and have not had
any known exposure risks, have a negative test result in order to do our Congressionally
mandated job is unprecedented.

Furthermore, this request is not in line with other House protocols. Members do not have to
show proof of a negative test to debate or vote on the House floor. This policy is inconsistent
with the rules imposed by the Speaker to conduct the business of the House, as well as rules
currently imposed by any other Committee in the House of Representatives.

We will not comply with your request.

Respectfully,[...]