Committee GOP Launches Inquiry Into Whether Jack Lew Violated Federal Law

Today, Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee Jeff Sessions (R-AL) sent a letter to Acting Office of Management and Budget Director Jeffrey Zients inquiring about Treasury Secretary nominee Jack Lew’s role in allegedly violating federal law.

“Given that the Secretary of the Treasury will be responsible for issuing Medicare funding warnings and will serve as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Medicare Trust Funds, we need a better understanding of the administration’s decision not to comply with Medicare law and Mr. Lew’s role in that decision,” says the letter from the Republican members of the Senate Budget Committee. 

Specifically, the letter asks for:

1. A detailed legislative proposal responsive to the latest Medicare funding warning to bring the administration into compliance with federal law

2. All documents, electronic or otherwise, received, reviewed or authored by Mr. Lew regarding      responding to Medicare funding warnings during his most recent tenure at the Office of Management and Budget.

Sessions has emerged as a leader in opposing the Lew nomination. “Jack Lew must never be Secretary of Treasury,” said Sessions in a statement. “His testimony before the Senate Budget Committee less than two years ago was so outrageous and false that it alone disqualifies.”

Lew has also been the recipient of a controversial Wall Street bonus totaling nearly $950,000. Lew bagged the Citigroup bonus just days after the big bank received billions in a taxpayer-funded bailout.

President Barack Obama has previously castigated Wall Street bonuses from bailout recipients, calling them “obsence” examples of “fat cats who are getting awarded for their failure.”