Romney Campaign Press Release - Party's Over for President Obama's GSA

"It's bad enough that President Obama's GSA decided to blow nearly a million dollars in resorts across the country, but now a prominent official won't even answer questions from Congress on the wasteful spending. Americans deserve a government willing to answer hard questions and make tough decisions when it comes to spending taxpayers' hard-earned dollars." —Andrea Saul, Romney Campaign Spokesperson

Today, An Official From President Obama's GSA Plans To Invoke The Fifth Amendment To Avoid Answering Questions About The Agency's Wasteful Spending Record:

Jeff Neely, An Official From President Obama's GSA, Plans To "Invoke His Fifth Amendment Rights Ahead Of A Scheduled Monday Grilling On The Hill." "The General Services Administration official tasked with organizing a now-infamous $822,000 Las Vegas conference plans to invoke his Fifth Amendment rights ahead of a scheduled Monday grilling on the Hill. On Thursday, House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) served a subpoena to require Jeff Neely to appear before the committee, according to Democratic committee documents obtained by POLITICO. Neely's attorney on Friday informed the committee Neely will exercise his right against self-incrimination and requested not to attend the hearing." (Burgess Everett, "GSA Official To Take The Fifth," Politico, 4/13/12)

Neely Is The Official Responsible For The GSA's Infamous Conference, Which Squandered Nearly $1 Million In Taxpayer Funds For A Luxurious "Spending Spree." "As the executive largely responsible for an October, 2010 conference at a Las Vegas resort, Neely was subpoenaed to testify Monday before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. The panel is one of four congressional committees investigating GSA spending — inquiries that began earlier this month when the agency's inspector general reported an $823,000 spending spree at the Las Vegas event." (Larry Margasak, "Jeffrey Neely, GSA Official, To Remain Silent At Congressional Hearing," The Associated Press, 4/13/12)

What Is Neely Is Too Afraid To Discuss At Todays's Hearing? Maybe It's The Obama Administration's Decision To Sit On The Scandal For Nearly A Year:

"An Internal Government Memo Released Friday Shows Officials Of The GSA Were Aware Of A Spending Problem Months Before The Scandal Burst Into Public View This Month." (Larry Margasak, "Jeffrey Neely, GSA Official, To Remain Silent At Congressional Hearing," The Associated Press, 4/13/12)

Susan Brita — GSA's Deputy Administrator And An Obama Political Appointee — Learned Of The Wasteful Spending Nearly A Year Before The Public. "Susan Brita, the GSA's deputy administrator and an Obama political appointee, emailed other agency officials in July 2011 saying the agency's inspector general found ‘no substantive agenda' at the conference. She also said that expenses for a clown suit, bicycles for a training exercise, tuxedos and a mind-reader ‘didn't lend themselves to the claim of a substantive conference.' Brita suggested the agency should deal with the prospect of the news media latching onto the conference's nearly $1 million cost." ("Key Figure In General Services Administration Scandal Issued Subpoena, Won't Testify On Hill," FoxNews.com, 4/14/12)

The Obama Administration Waited Until The GSA Report "Was Public To Remove The Agency's Top Leaders." "‘It takes a lot of work to spend $3,000 a person and at a time when unemployment was nearly 10 percent, Americans were suffering and GSA was enjoying the good times and doing so with high-ranking political employees,' Issa said in a statement. He blamed the White House, which learned of Miller's investigation 11 months ago, for waiting until his report was public to remove the agency's top leaders." (Lisa Rein, "Video Plays Up GSA Revelry In Vegas," The Washington Post, 4/5/12)

Or Maybe Neely Is Too Afraid To Discuss The Bonuses He And Others Received For Wasting Taxpayer Dollars:

GSA Conference Organizers "Received Bonuses Ranging From $500 To $1,500 For Their Contributions" To The GSA's Lavish Conference. "Four congressional hearings on the scandal are scheduled for next week. One will be held by Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), who said Tuesday that several conference organizers received bonuses ranging from $500 to $1,500 for their contributions to the event. She is seeking a list of those officials from the GSA." (Lisa Rein, "Acting GSA Chief Calls Las Vegas Spree ‘Completely Unacceptable'," The Washington Post, 4/10/12)

Neely Received A $9,000 Bonus, Despite A Committee Recommendation That He Not Receive A Bonus. "Jeff Neely, the event's lead organizer and head of the San Francisco-based Pacific Rim office, received a bonus of about $9,000 for his performance in 2011, McCaskill said. The committee reviewing bonuses for Senior Executive Service leaders, including Neely, recommended that he not receive one. But senior agency leaders did not heed that advice, McCaskill said. Neely is on administrative leave." (Lisa Rein, "Acting GSA Chief Calls Las Vegas Spree ‘Completely Unacceptable'," The Washington Post, 4/10/12)

Or Maybe He Doesn't Want To Answer Questions About All Of The Other Examples Of Waste From President Obama's GSA:

President Obama's GSA Sent Five Employees To Hawaii "For Up To A Week" To Attend A Single One-Hour Event. "The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee said Wednesday that five employees associated with the recently scandal-plagued Government Services Administration went to Hawaii for up to a week in 2011 to attend an hour-long ribbon cutting on space leased by the federal government for the FBI." (Chad Pergram, "GSA Employees Travel To Hawaii Five-Days For A One-Hour Ribbon Cutting," Fox News, 4/11/12)

• "Some Of The GSA Employees Went Snorkeling During Their Free Time In The Mornings." "The transcript indicates that some of the GSA employees went snorkeling during their free time in the mornings. The House panel is one of two in the chamber that will hold hearings about the GSA scandal next week." (Chad Pergram, "GSA Employees Travel To Hawaii Five-Days For A One-Hour Ribbon Cutting," Fox News, 4/11/12)

In 2010, GSA Sent 120 Interns And 20 Executives To A Five-Day Conference In Palm Springs. "About 120 interns and 20 GSA executives attended a five-day conference for the interns in May 2010 at a Palm Springs, Calif., resort, according to information provided by the GSA inspector general to a House committee." ("General Services Administration Treats Its Interns To Conference At California Resort," The Associated Press, 4/12/12)