House Republicans late on Monday invited outgoing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky to testify before Congress on her agency's COVID-19 handling, a signal of the GOP escalating its oversight into "undue influence" during the pandemic.
The GOP-led Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic demanded a trove of records from Walensky in late March following revelations that the CDC sought input from the American Federation of Teachers, a powerful teachers union, on school reopening guidance in February 2021. But since Walensky has "yet to produce a single responsive document," the committee is re-upping its request and setting a June 13 date for the official to provide testimony and information on the CDC's ties to the union's president, Randi Weingarten.
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"We have been negotiating the appearance of CDC Director Walensky since early May and look forward to her voluntary cooperation with the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic," Liz Lyons, a spokeswoman for the committee, told the Washington Examiner. "We will evaluate all options at our disposal should we not receive voluntary cooperation."
The AFT seemingly lobbied the CDC to pump the brakes on a full reopening of in-person learning throughout schools in 2021, according to emails obtained by the conservative watchdog Americans for Public Trust. Days later, the federal agency issued guidance that partly mirrored the union's own demands and permitted schools to opt out of in-person learning in certain areas, documents show.
"I can assure you that this is free from political meddling," Walensky, who announced this month that she will depart her role on June 30, said of the guidance upon it being released on Feb. 12, 2021.
The House's COVID-19 panel, led by its chairman Brad Wenstrup (R-OH), a doctor, cited in its Monday letter how Weingarten testified in late April that she has a "direct number" to Walensky. The congressman is asking the CDC head to "preserve" all emails and documents in her possession starting in January 2021 about the February 2021 school guidance.
"For purposes of this request, 'preserve' means taking reasonable steps to prevent the partial or full destruction, alteration, testing, deletion, shredding, incineration, wiping, relocation, migration, theft, or mutation of electronic records as well as negligent or intentional handling in a manner that would make such records incomplete or inaccessible," Wenstrup's letter read.
"Exercise reasonable efforts to identify and notify former employees and contractors, including subcontractors and consultants who may have access to such electronic records in an effort to ensure these records are to be preserved," the letter added.
While the letter is a voluntary request for testimony and records, the committee also maintains subpoena power. A source close to the committee and familiar with its thinking told the Washington Examiner that it is "evaluating everything that is at their disposal if negotiations regarding her appearance fail.”
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Walensky's resignation announcement in early May reportedly blindsided health officials in the Biden administration, who expected that the director would ideally stay in her post until the end of 2023 or Biden's first term. The reason for her departure remains unclear, and she received sharp criticism during her tenure from Republicans over the CDC's response to the pandemic.
The CDC did not return a request for comment.