Washington, D.C. —Today’s House Oversight Committee DOGE Subcommittee hearing attacking nonprofit organizations became a spectacular failure for Chairwoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, as her handpicked witnesses, including a hate group leader under DOJ investigation for fraud, inadvertently highlighted the massive hypocrisy of Republicans attacking civil society organizations while their own allies have pocketed billions in federal contracts and subsidies. As reported by The Guardian, Greene assembled what Congressional Integrity Project described as a “rogues’ gallery of extremists, conspiracy theorists and C-team political operatives,” whose lack of credibility ultimately undermined the hearing’s intended purpose.
What was intended as a coordinated attack on civil society organizations instead became a complete debacle for Greene when Democratic members of Congress systematically dismantled her witnesses’ credibility. Representative Melanie Stansbury’s strategic questioning forced the witnesses to admit they were Project 2025 advisors, conspiracy theorists, and partisan operatives – not the objective watchdogs Greene presented them as.
Rep. Greg Casar exposed the hearing’s partisan nature, cutting through Greene’s pretense of legitimate oversight to reveal the true agenda: “This hearing is not about taking on nonprofits that are going ‘against the national interest’ or who are ‘extreme’ – this is all about trying to shut down nonprofits who might share political views that are different from the President of the United States.”
In response, Congressional Integrity Project Senior Advisor Kyle Herrig has issued the following statement:
“Today’s hearing was a spectacular failure that backfired on Chairwoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, as her assembly of hate group leaders and conspiracy theorists only served to highlight the massive hypocrisy of Republicans attacking civil society organizations while their own allies have pocketed billions in federal contracts and subsidies.
“When Republicans choose witnesses under DOJ investigation for fraud to lecture others about fiscal responsibility, they expose the shameful reality of this political theater designed to damage organizations that help refugees find safety, support women’s reproductive rights, and combat climate change.
“Instead of legitimate oversight, Americans witnessed a failed attempt to weaponize government power against groups that serve vulnerable communities while Republican power brokers continue to gorge themselves at the federal trough.”
Background
The hearing featured Mark Krikorian, whose Center for Immigration Studies is designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center and is currently under DOJ investigation for potentially lying to obtain over $700,000 in PPP loans.
The profound hypocrisy was on full display as Greene’s witnesses attacked nonprofits serving vulnerable communities while their own networks have systematically benefited from billions in government contracts and subsidies. Daniel Turner, who worked for the Charles Koch Institute before founding his climate denial organization, criticized environmental groups for federal funding while his former employer, Charles Koch, has received over $750 million in government subsidies.
Scott Walter, who operates the secretive Capital Research Center that won’t disclose its donors while attacking others for lacking transparency, helped funnel nearly $600,000 in anonymous donations to Ginni Thomas’s group in 2023 while his organization had business before the Supreme Court. Walter was also featured prominently in the debunked “2000 Mules” conspiracy documentary.
See here for more information on the hearing’s witnesses.