Some witnesses in front of Congressional committees seem determined to rescue defeat from the jaws of victory, whether through their demeanor, their preparation or their sheer refusal to go along with the gag, even when the facts are on their side.
The last post detailed the recent testimony of Maura Harty, Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs. She took an explosive level of anger from her inquisitors and ratcheted the moment down to an almost perfunctory “t” crossing and “i” dotting session. Now for our “Don’ts” in testifying before the House or Senate, the first of which is the most important:
DON’T LIE.
It seems obvious, but as the former Deputy Secretary of the Interior, J. Steven Griles, found out last week, lying to Congress is a crime. He’ll now have 10 months in prison to think about what else he could have said to the Indian Affairs Committee when he testified about his relationship with Jack Abramoff in 2005.
The rest of our “Don’ts” come from the June 13th Senate Rules Committee confirmation hearing for FEC Commissioner Hans von Spakovsky. As is the case with most botched testimony, what Mr. von Spakovsky said did not matter nearly as much as how he said it and what he did not say at all.
After von Spakovsky’s opening statement, Senator Dianne Feinstein read a letter from six of his former colleagues at the Department of Justice warning of his alleged unfitness for the job. The Commissioner responded, “Many of the things in that letter are inaccurate and wrong,” bringing us to our next “Don’t” for Congressional testimony:
DON’T CONTRADICT THE CHAIR WITHOUT SUGARCOATING IT.
Nobody’s saying you shouldn’t defend yourself, but senators are like eggs- they like to be coddled. Try and remember that if your job is on the line.
As Feinstein got into detailed questions, von Spakovsky offered the following answers, “Uh, I, I, really don’t recall.” “Ma’am, I don’t remember any conversation.” “I do not remember that case.” “I don’t recall that investigation.” We are reminded here both of Alberto Gonzales’ memory-challenged performance before the Judiciary Committee, but also of our next “Don’t”:
DON’T FORGET THE LAST FEW YEARS OF YOUR LIFE.
We all know it’s hard to remember the details of every conversation, but when you’re working at the highest levels of government, you should come up with a system to recall the details of your work, like tying a string around your finger to send your subpoenas out at the end of the day or making up a song to remember sentencing guidelines- whatever it takes.
Your mother probably covered the final and most fatal “Don’t” from Mr. von Spakovsky when she scolded you:
DON’T SASS ME!
As the senators continued to needle the Commissioner, he gave into the urge to defend himself with such ill-conceived comments as, “First of all, Senator…”, “As I made clear on more than one occasion…”, “You need to understand…”, and “That’s privileged, I can’t tell you….”.
Feinstein’s reaction: “You are under oath.”
When Senator Feinstien finished with von Spakovsky, she excused herself from the hearing without acknowledging him or looking at the other three witnesses at the table.
By the time Secretary Harty completed more than two hours of questioning with her subcommittee, she had been called “one of the best in the business.” As the hearing ended, Sen. Bill Nelson apologized almost sheepishly for “all of these pointed questions.” To which Harty replied, “Sir, it’s my job.”