The Huffington Post has reported that Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform committee, which is leading the GOP’s investigation into the activities of Planned Parenthood’s use of federal funds, hasn’t turned anything up. “Did I look at the finances and have a hearing specifically as to the revenue portion and how they spend? Yes. Was there any wrongdoing? I didn't find any."
The Republican Party has been in chaos over the past 24 hours, which also cannot be good for the Koch Bros and other Republican oligarchs’ psyche – particularly over what is happening in the People’s House. Their agita derives from the House’s celebration over the resignation of Speaker John Boehner for trying to stop another government shutdown - to withdrawal of his heir apparent, Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), (ostensibly because of his Benghazi Committee gaffe acknowledging the committee was a political witchhunt to undermine Hillary Clinton) - to the suggestion that the real reason for McCarthy’s leaving was that ‘the family values guy’ is having an affair with a fellow congresswomen (I guess for them that plays a whole lot better than with a fellow congressman).
Chaffetz seems to have learned a lesson – when an investigation turns up nothing, it’s over, right – well, maybe? Remember, this is the guy, who, along with many of his GOP cohorts, wanted to shut down the government again over funding for Planned Parenthood. This was precipitated when phony, highly edited undercover videos showed up purportedly showing that Planned Parenthood was selling aborted fetuses for profit.
Let us not forget that Chaffetz harassed Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, during a televised Congressional hearing, about her salary and the organization’s expenses. He put up a bogus misleading chart, which Chaffetz initially said came from Planned Parenthood. Richards was astute enough to point out it was prepared by Americans United for Life, an anti-abortion group, from a web post from June 2015. Besides Chaffetz being publicly embarrassed by Richards at that time, the chart itself was misleading, and Politifact rated it “pants on fire.”
Chaffetz is running for Speaker of the House, so it makes sense that once the investigation found no wronging doing he would shut down the investigation. It is human to err, and the sign of intelligence is that we learn from our mistakes. He certainly would not want his committee to be accused of being politically motivated - as is the House Select Committee on Benghazi. However, consider the fact that Chaffetz is a Republican, and ‘stupid is what stupid does’. So it should not surprise anyone that Chaffetz said yesterday even though the organization is using its money appropriately “I think there will continue to be investigations.”