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Politics

Wasserman Schultz Insists She 'Did the Right Thing' by Standing with Arrested IT Staffer

August 3, 2017 - 7:15pm
Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Debbie Wasserman Schultz

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is breaking her silence weeks after she made headlines for keeping a top aide on her payroll for nearly six months after he was banned from accessing the congressional computer network and fired by two other members of Congress.

Despite the controversy which has engulfed Wasserman Schultz’s office, the South Florida congresswoman still doesn’t feel she did anything wrong.

Speaking with the Sun Sentinel, Wasserman Schultz stood by her decision to keep Imran Awan on her staff for months before finally firing him last week. 

Wasserman Schultz finally cut the cord with Awan after he was arrested on bank fraud charges at an airport trying to fly to Pakistan and the charges became public. 

“I believe that I did the right thing, and I would do it again,” Wasserman Schultz said. “There are times when you can’t be afraid to stand alone and you have to stand up for what’s right.”

Wasserman Schultz explained Awan and his family members lost privileges to the House’s IT network because they were under investigation for “procurement violations” and “data transfer violations.”

Awan applied for a $165,000 home equity loan for a rental property, which violates credit union’s policies since he was not the owner. Investigators said the funds from the home equity loan were then used as part of $283,000 which was wire transferred to two people in Faisalabad, Pakistan.

Wasserman Schultz went on to imply her top staffer may have been unfairly targeted for the investigation due to his faith since he is Muslim.

"I had grave concerns about his due process rights being violated," Wasserman Schultz said. "When their investigation was reviewed with me, I was presented with no evidence of anything that they were being investigated for. And so that in me gave me great concern that his due process rights were being violated. That there were racial and ethnic profiling concerns that I had."

Wasserman Schultz’s handling of the situation has been harshly criticized by Republicans, who say it’s possible Awan was involved in the email hacking at the Democratic National Committee when Wasserman Schultz served as chair. 

Backlash from the hacking, which was ultimately blamed on Russia, resulted in Wasserman Schultz’s resignation from the post. 

Democratic challenger Tim Canova has also lambasted Wasserman Schultz for the scandal and said voters were tired of dealing with “Debbie Whatshedonenow Schultz.”

"People are just tired of this,” Canova said in an interview with Fox News’ Steve Doocy this week. “It's one constant drama and scandal after another with her and she's a very divisive figure in the party. The party needs to unify and the voters want to talk about the issues.”

Fellow Florida congressman U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis pushed the Debbie drama one step further on Thursday, demanding the U.S. Department of Justice launch a probe into Awan’s finances. 

“The Department of Justice must work to immediately mitigate the damage done by Awan and take whatever measures are necessary, including freezing illicit funds, in order to fully investigate this incident,” DeSantis wrote in a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions

DeSantis went on to ask whether the DOJ was investigating whether or not money from the stolen property from the House was included in the wire transfer to Pakistan and questioned whether the Department would seek a court order freezing the proceeds of any real estate transactions or money made from selling stolen goods.  

“I hope that we can work together to undo the serious damage done by these individuals while in  the employment of the House of Representatives,” DeSantis wrote. 

DeSantis’ greater fear may be, however, that Awan is somehow connected to terrorist organizations based out of the Middle Eastern country.

“While we can never tolerate breaches of the public trust, the wire transfer to Pakistan is particularly alarming as Pakistan is home to numerous terrorist organizations,” he wrote.

Wasserman Schultz dismissed DeSantis’ claims as nothing more than nonsensical sensationalism. 

“The right-wing media circus fringe has immediately focused not on this run-of-the-mill investigation just reporting the facts, but jumped to outrageous, egregious conclusions that they were trying to, that they have ties to terrorists and that they were stealing data,” she said.

 

Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.

 


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Comments

Seem I was wrong about a fact. Not the first time. Since I am not a politician will not lie or try to cover it up. A communist friend of mine from Broward County pointed out that congress IS on Obamacare. Obama insisted on it. The catch is that they (and their ten thousand staffers) are all on the Cadillac plan. And they don't pay for it.

I hope it is quietly being investigated unlike the Russia investigation. I can't believe nothing will come of this, I think Awan was the DNC email leaker.

I hope Vi is right but experience tells me JoAnne is. Nothing will come of this. Cops don't arrest cops. They just don't. Cops DO plant evidence. Have been doing it since Seward bought Alaska. Politicians leave each other alone while they all do the only thing that matters to any of them. Raising money and getting re elected. Elected politicians don't write bills. What a bore. Especially when you have lobbyists that know ten times more about the issue, are glad to write them AND give you a big check. Wish Donnie would hurry up and start the drainage project. Getting the pondscum sucking toads enrolled in Obamacare a great place to start.

DWS comment that she would do that again after its been revealed that this Pakistani she hired was under federal investigation?? Claiming she stood alone standing up for whats right?? Does she consider espionage right?? She is a congressman/women and her thinking is that?? Do you democrats now see what is wrong with your party and your agenda? DWS hired what I consider the enemy. If you follow the paper trail on Awan you will find millions missing and sent to Pakistan, not to mention his relatives cashing in also. The political correctness is so moronic with the dems that you cannot even embellish this story because of it's insanity. DWS should be and tried and jailed!!

Yes, many of us Dems do see what is wrong with our party, it is called corruption. Any and all elected representatives of the citizenry that instead represent the needs of the highest bidders over the needs of the citizenry are by definition corrupt. This corruption is not exclusive to the Democratic Party. If and this is a HUGE IF- if citizens who support both parties could drop their support for two corrupt parties and come together to demand that we want instead: A Government of the people, by the people and most importantly: FOR the people, then we might have a chance to retake our democracy back. If together we are able to regain our democracy then we can go back to fighting over liberal and conservative ideas. I dunno about you but if i had to bet on it i would say that you would put a working democracy above all else politics wise for our country. Right now this government of by and for the highest bidders is only working for a very very few folks and not all of them are even American citizens! This past Presidential election proves that more and more of the citizenry are beginning to wake up-to realize that their problems are not about Republicans or Democrats. They are starting to realize that their problems are about the assholes who control 'our' government... and we aint those assholes brother.

One has to wonder,just what does DWS have to do to be investigated? Nothing ever happens to any of these people.,Lay low then come out and say I did nothing wrong.I suppose Aw an is still walking around with a T.S clearance,just like Susan Rice, all the left over obama people in the WH.I wonder whose side McMaster is on?

She used the guy to hack into private computers to undermine legislation and to dig up anything to twist into a scandal. She committed major felonies, and one is Treason. That is a capital offense.

She used the guy to hack into private computers to undermine legislation and to dig up anything to twist into a scandal. She committed major felonies, and one is Treason. That is a capital offense.

she and Trump should be fully investigated under the law. No one is above the law and hopefully she gets the same scrutiny and investigation as the "fake president".

Nothing in American History has been more Criminal than Obama the muslim. Obama is the fake president. Obama is America's number one enemy. The plans by Obama to destroy America were under way, and would have been completed by the piece of shit, Hillary Clinton.

It's time for WS to go, one way or the other!

Debbie "Medusa-head" Schultz would "sell America out" while adamantly claiming that she "did the right thing, and would do it again", and would "never feel that she did anything wrong". (In other words: When you're "in a bind, LIE, keep on LYING, and stick with your story"). These are Liberal-Democrat-tactics...and we've seen them "time and time again": "Watch my lips, I DID NOT have sex with that woman! ! !" {It's time to "flush-out" Schultz,... she can't be trusted in our Republic's government, since she would "sell it out" to save her "lying eyes" EVERY TIME ! } We've ALL always known she was an inveterate liar, IT'S TIME TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT ! ! !

Shultzie is the poster child for the Democrats. Along with Maxine Waters and Nancy Pelosi. I expect any day now for her to call a press conference and announce that she was conduction her own investigation. These people are seemingly untouchable. No doubt she belongs in prison. In the meantime, back at the ranch, we have a grand jury impaneled to look for a crime against Trump to chase him down about. There is no crime, but they at there to loo for one. Any crime will do. Anything that that they may or may not find or may or may not think is a crime will do. Trump is Trump. I voted for him and am not all that unhappy. But I am hoping that Kelley will be capable of taking the damn phone away and getting him to shut the **** up. Every time he shoots his mouth off he makes things worse - for no reason. But hard to be more corrupt than Shultzie.

DWS new for a month that Awan had been fired by the other Democrats but she kept him on what was she was going through her mind. She wasted our TAX MONEY. She has not been in control for a long time. Is she really representing the people of her district? I don't think so.

"Wasted our tax money"??? (That's the Misdemeanor!)...Allowed America's SECRETS to sift through the hands of an "attempting to escape" Pakistani and his entire family (who were hired by her, and who she still defends)...{THAT'S the Felony !....and when those SECRETS come to light, There will be ADDITIONAL FELONIES}.... (This type of action is exactly why America put the "Rosenbergs" to death in the 1940's) The Democrat Party is "circling the drain"...Make no mistake about that...

Debbie is scrambling, her neck is in the noose. I'll bet she's singing to the FBI.

Wasn't she James Comey's main squeeze?

Dirty Debbie is going to paint this the only way she can to save her crooked ass. She was noble in not jumping the gun and firing Awan, others are engaging in Islamophobia or racial and ethnic profiling! She was concerned about due process! The bullshit is starting to flow freely now that she's come out of hiding. She's probably playing the only hand she has...and hoping like hell that Awan doesn't reveal any of her secrets!

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