As we've been covering, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky traveled to Pennsylvania this week on the taxpayer's dime where he hobnobbed with Democratic politicians in the commonwealth and even criticized the Trump-Vance ticket. According to Zelensky, Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) "is too radical." On Wednesday, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, and Assistant to the President and White House Counsel Edward Siskel seeking documents about any government resources used for the visit.
Concerns about the visit go beyond this week, though. Comer's letter begins by reminding us that then President Donald Trump was impeached over a 2019 phone call to Zelensky, "despite a lack of any evidence of wrongdoing on the part of President Trump."
"The Committee seeks to determine whether the Biden Harris Administration attempted to use a foreign leader to benefit Vice President Harris’s presidential campaign and, if so, necessarily committed an abuse of power," Comer also mentions in his opening, with Pennsylvania being such a key swing state.
"The Committee seeks to understand the circumstances that led—and any facts that could justify—the Biden-Harris Administration to transport President Zelensky on a Department of the Air Force aircraft to Pennsylvania to introduce government officials to President Zelensky about the Russia-Ukraine war," Comer goes on to write, discussing how Zelensky referred to Vance as "too radical" in his interview with The New Yorker. Zelensky's comments weren't merely about Vance, but Trump as well, as Zelensky "further stated his belief that President Trump and his administration would not be able stop the war, despite this being one of President Trump’s main campaign platforms (and the peace in the region under the entirety of the former Trump Administration)," Comer reminded. Trump reiterated such a promise during a Monday rally in Pennsylvania.
"This rhetoric coming from a foreign leader released in anticipation of a U.S.-taxpayer-funded visit about the current Administration’s political opponent is highly concerning. The Committee is investigating any coordination or communication among the Biden-Harris Administration, Pennsylvania’s Office of the Governor, and President Zelensky for use or solicitation of use of government property to politically benefit Vice President Harris’s presidential campaign," Comer continued to lay out.
In his letter to Garland, Comer brought up the attorney general's own words from earlier this month regarding a task force on election interference.
"You recently stated DOJ 'will be relentlessly aggressive in countering and disrupting attempts by Russia and Iran—as well as China or any other foreign malign actor—to interfere in our elections and undermine our democracy,'" Comer quoted Garland as saying. "The Committee believes no foreign actor—whether or not deemed 'malign' by DOJ—should be permitted to interfere in American elections," he continued with original emphasis in his letter.
🚨 BREAKING: Chairman James Comer Is Investigating the Biden-Harris Admin’s Use of Taxpayer-Funded Resources to Fly Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Pennsylvania to Campaign for Kamala Harris
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) September 25, 2024
Chairman Comer today is opening an investigation into the Biden-Harris… pic.twitter.com/BaVKAhoFoO
The letters to Austin and Siskel also mention the relevance to those individuals as well.
"Because resources from the Department of the Air Force were used in this apparent campaign event that resulted in the potential interference of a federal election, the Committee seeks information from the Department of Defense," the letter to Austin mentions. Zelensky arrived via U.S. Air Force C-17 military aircraft.
"Because the Biden-Harris Administration orchestrated and used government resources to make possible this apparent campaign event that resulted in the potential interference in a federal election, the Committee seeks information from the White House," the letter to Siskel mentions.
Comer is seeking "Any information and communication, both internal and external, about President Zelensky’s visit to the United States during September 2024," with such a request expected by October 2.
Nine House Republicans, led by Rep. Lance Gooden (R-TX), also sent letters to Michael Horowitz and Robert Storch, the inspectors general of the Justice and Defense departments, respectively, about Zelensky's visit.
As Comer's letter mentioned, Pennsylvania is indeed one of the most critical swing states in this election. Per RealClearPolling, Harris only leads by +0.6 in Pennsylvania against, as of Wednesday morning.
Zelensky met with Gov. Josh Shapiro, as well as Sen. Bob Casey, Jr., and Rep. Matt Cartwright, all Democrats. Casey and Cartwright are both up for reelection and facing tough races.
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