A House committee has started a probe into charges by a former mayoral candidate that he was paid by members of the Gray for Mayor campaign so he could remain on the trail and attack then-mayor Adrian Fenty. The announcement by Rep. Darrell Issa’s House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform comes just one day after D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray fired his chief of staff, Gerri Mason Hall, less than an hour before she was scheduled to answer questions by the D.C. Council about how Sulaimon Brown landed a city job paying $110,000 a year. Brown met with investigators from the California Republican’s committee last week. The probe is being started because the House committee feels Hall, and others, have not been responsive, Issa said in a statement.
“I asked my investigators to gather some basic information to determine if the District of Columbia would be able to swiftly and fairly evaluate the merit of these charges and take necessary action if appropriate,” the statement said. “Committee investigators have spoken with individuals inside and outside the District government and have made unsuccessful attempts to interview key figures close to the mayor including his former chief of staff. The initial findings of these efforts do not give me confidence that the District government can make this evaluation.”
Hall’s attorney is out of the country and could not be reached.
A committee aide said investigators have found evidence that Brown was placed in his job without an interview.
“This is a very serious matter for the District of Columbia to have the House oversight committee investigating,” said Ward 2 Councilman Jack Evans, the council’s longest-serving member. “The city is at risk of interference by Congress, and the worst possibility is the reimposition of the control board.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI are also “assessing” Brown’s claims. Neither that office nor Issa’s would say if they have discussed their separate probes.
A spokeswoman for Gray said the mayor “believes that there are sufficient investigative bodies, including the [FBI] addressing and responding to Mr. Brown’s allegations. Congressional involvement is not likely to illuminate any additional issues or information.”
Issa’s committee can issue subpoenas although it has not done so yet, a spokesman said.
This is the first time a House committee has opened a probe into city issues since the federal government seized authority of the District through the control board in the mid-1990s.
The House committee has asked that Hall, along with Gray for Mayor campaign Chairwoman Lorraine Green and campaign consultant Howard Brooks speak with congressional investigators. An attorney for Green did not respond to a request for comment.
“We’re in the process of complying with letters from Congress and the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” Brooks’ attorney, Glenn Ivey, told The Washington Examiner. “Mr. Brooks doesn’t have anything to hide and we’re confident when all this is over he will be cleared of wrongdoing.”
Examiner Congressional Correspondent Susan Ferrechio contributed to this report
