PenceBlog: Update on Select Committee - U.S. Congressman Mike Pence : 6th District Of Indiana

A few updates on the Select Committee to Investigate the Voting Irregularities of August 2, 2007:

The committee released it’s interim report today. To view it click here.

C-SPAN 3 will air the full committee hearing tonight at 6:14 p.m. EDT.

Finally, Roll Call and CQ have stories on yesterday’s hearing. Below are excerpts:

Roll Call:

This conflict between parties, men and machine must be thoroughly investigated. ... We will expose the truth of what happened,” said Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.), the panel’s ranking member. He later added: “This report lays a solid foundation for us to begin our work.

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The investigation will focus on an Aug. 2 vote on a GOP-authored amendment to the Agriculture spending bill that would have prohibited illegal immigrants from accessing certain federally funded programs.

Republicans allege that the Democratic majority mishandled the vote, resulting in the defeat of the measure. GOP leaders assert that a tied 214-214 vote — rending a defeat — announced by Rep. Mike McNulty (D-N.Y.) was inaccurate and that the motion had in fact passed 215-213 as Republicans changed their votes.

CQ:

Members of a bipartisan House panel charged with scrutinizing a contested Aug. 2 floor vote on Thursday approved a draft interim report and began gathering information about the intricacies of the chamber’s voting procedures.

The six-member select committee, chaired by Bill Delahunt, D-Mass., heard from its first witness, House Clerk Lorraine C. Miller, who testified that the clerk’s office had retained 21 items of evidence related to the contested vote.

Lawmakers peppered Miller with questions about the availability of video and audio records of the disputed vote, which Republican leaders claim the Democrats unfairly manipulated in violation of House rules.

Mike Pence of Indiana, the panel’s top Republican, said he hoped the panel’s investigation would shed light on the incident, which he described as “a serious breakdown in the voting system of this institution, when the integrity of the means of measurement were called into question.”

The select committee also approved by voice vote a interim report, due Sept. 30, prepared by the Congressional Research Service. The panel was established Aug. 3 under a resolution (H Res 611) sponsored by Minority Leader John A. Boehner, R-Ohio.

An aide described the document, which was to be made public later Thursday, as “an initial outline of the areas of inquiry and how the panel is expected to proceed over the next few months.”

The report was not expected to reach any conclusions about the events or to recommend changes to House voting rules, another aspect of the committee’s charge.
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This conflict between parties, man and machine must be thoroughly investigated,” Pence said. “The select committee must follow the facts and let the chips fall where they may.

posted by Pence Press Office # 10:02 AM