Rep. Darrell Issa (R., Calif.), the ranking Republican on the House Oversight committee, says he could call for a special prosecutor to investigate the claim by Rep. Joe Sestak (D., Pa.) that he was offered a federal job by the White House in exchange for withdrawing from the Pennsylvania Democratic Senate primary.
“If the public doesn’t receive a satisfactory answer, the next step would be to call for a special prosecutor, which is well within the statute,” Issa told CBS News.
Issa said any quid pro quo offer of a job may have violated federal bribery and elections laws.
The California Republican has been pushing for the White House to provide details of conversations between Sestak and administration officials in the wake of Sestak’s comment during a radio interview last month that he was offered a high-ranking administration job in exchange for dropping his primary challenge against Sen. Arlen Specter.
Asked if that job was secretary of the Navy, Sestak declined to comment. His press secretary told CBS News that the lawmaker stands by his original statement that he was offered the job in exchange for an administration post. Sestak did not drop out of the race.
On March 10th, Issa sent a letter to White House lawyer Robert Bauer asking for details about communications between Sestak and the White House. In the letter, he pointed to statutes he said could have been violated if Sestak was offered a quid pro quo arrangement in which he would be given an administration job in exchange for leaving the race.
One of the more amusing paragraphs in the CBS story is the summary of White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs’ six (non) responses to inquiries on the Sestak affair:
On February 23rd, Gibbs said he had not looked into the matter. On March 1st, he said he had not made any progress on it. On March 9th, he said he did not have an update with him. On March 11th, he said he did not have anything additional on the matter. On March 12th, he said he did not have any more information on it.
Finally, on March 16th, Gibbs said this:
“Look, I’ve talked to several people in the White House; I’ve talked to people that have talked to others in the White House,” he said. “I’m told that whatever conversations have been had are not problematic.”
Issa begs to differ.