GOP’s new Benghazi lunatic: Meet Trey Gowdy, its substance-free committee chair

Want to know who's leading the right's new bit of theater? This clown might make you miss Darrell Issa

SIMON MALOY

When John Boehner finally buckled to pressure from his members and announced the creation of a House select committee to investigate Benghazi, there was never really any doubt that the real purpose of the whole exercise was to keep the Benghazi attacks alive as a political issue. Yesterday Boehner confirmed that our collective cynicism was justified when he tapped Rep. Trey Gowdy to be the committee chair.

If you’ve ever actually sat down and watched a hearing of the House Oversight Committee, on which Gowdy sits, then you probably have a pretty good idea of the South Carolina Republican’s approach to oversight: badger witnesses as aggressively and theatrically as possible, force them to answer questions for which there is no actual answer, post a video of his performance on YouTube, then go on Fox News.

Just in case you think I’m exaggerating, here’s a YouTube video the congressman posted of himself upbraiding former IRS official Lois Lerner for pleading the fifth at an Oversight Committee hearing. The content of Gowdy’s statement was dramatic enough, but it was still missing that added bit of flair, so he kicked it up a notch by adding a generic action-movie soundtrack.



Gripping stuff! As a member of the Oversight Committee, Gowdy has had no shortage of opportunities to preen for the cameras when Benghazi is on the docket, styling himself as an aggressive interlocutor while determinedly steering clear of any constructive observations.

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http://www.salon.com/2014/05/06/gop%E2%80%99s_new_benghazi_dreamboat_meet_trey_gowdy_its_substance_free_committee_chair/