This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Some folks from the national media are watching us watch him:
Chris D'Angelo | The Huffington Post
"In a searing editorial Tuesday, The Salt Lake Tribune urged Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) to do his job and investigate, rather than copy, President Donald Trump. ..."
— Jason Chaffetz Called Out by Salt Lake City Tribune For Refusing to Investigate Trump — Hrafnkell Haraldsson |Politics USA
[Points off for getting the name of our newspaper wrong.]
"Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) has come under fire from Democrats for his refusal to investigate Michael Flynn and the White House over illicit contacts with Russia during the presidential campaign.
"Former Independent presidential candidate Evan McMullin has also called him out for 'shirking his duty.' Now that chorus has been joined by the Salt Lake City Tribune editorial staff.
"In an editorial, the paper called on Chaffetz to 'investigate, not emulate, the president' because of false claims Chaffetz made about 'ringers' in his town hall audience, all too eerily similar to Trump's cries of voter fraud. ..."
Here's the editorial they are on about:
— Chaffetz should investigate, not emulate, the president — Salt Lake Tribune Editorial
" ... After his unpleasant experience at a town hall meeting in Cottonwood Heights last week, Chaffetz had some reasonable points to make about how too many in the overflow crowd were apparently there to create a scene, not to have a reasonable give and take about important issues.
"But right away Chaffetz went and spoiled his argument and his credibility by claiming, with no factual basis, that the raucous crowd was speckled with paid hecklers who weren't even from Utah. ..."
Also:
— Chaffetz's toadyism may haunt the House GOP — Jennifer Rubin | The Washington Post
"One can only marvel at the toadyism of House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., — who previously recommended gutting the ethics office — in demanding a full-scale investigation by the Justice Department inspector general into leaks but resolutely resisting any investigation into President Donald Trump's breached hotel lease, his conflicts of interest, his ties with Russia and his recent receipt of a trademark from China — just after reaffirming the One China policy — which is indisputably an 'emolument' from a foreign government. ..."
— What Happened To Jason Chaffetz's Backbone? — Jason Linkins | The Huffington Post
" ... Chaffetz's sudden lack of zeal is noteworthy. While he's griping these days about people calling for 'fishing expeditions,' it wasn't long ago that he was telling anyone who'd listen that he was hard at work prepping his lures. Back when it seemed certain that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would become president — and during those few hours that Chaffetz had "unendorsed" Trump, citing his daughter's honor — the Oversight chairman was loudly bragging about his plans to pepper the Clinton White House with investigations...."
— Does Jason Chaffetz understand his job? — Andrew Koppelman and Steven Lubet — CNN
"Rep. Jason Chaffetz has some explaining to do. As chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, the Utah Republican spared no effort in leading the multiple investigations of Hillary Clinton. Yet he has shown little interest in investigating, or even questioning, President Donald Trump's myriad financial entanglements. His explanations of the difference suggest that Chaffetz doesn't even understand why Congress has the power to investigate in the first place. ..."
— Jason Chaffetz Only Does the Easy Part of His Job — Benjamin Freed | Washingtonian
" ... As chairman of the House Oversight Committee, Jason Chaffetz is nominally responsible for investigating misdeeds and errors committed by the executive branch. So, it should've been a bit puzzling that when he was asked Tuesday if he plans to root around the Russian connections that led Michael Flynn to step down as President Trump's national security adviser, Chaffetz demurred.
" 'It's taking care of itself,' Chaffetz told reporters.
"But that's the kind of response to expect from Chaffetz these days. The Utah Republican has been one of Trump's biggest enablers in Congress, taking a wait-and-see-and-wait-some-more approach to the administration. ..."
— Top GOP investigators on the Hill say they won't investigate Michael Flynn — Tara Golshan | Vox
— Will top cop Chaffetz actually police Trump? — Kyle Cheney and Darren Samuelson | Politico
" ... Rep. Jason Chaffetz has taken some baby steps lately toward policing the Trump White House, chastising Kellyanne Conway for her hawking Ivanka Trump products and questioning the president's security protocols at Mar-a-Lago.
"Now some Republicans are urging the chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to plow full speed ahead — never mind that it's a fellow Republican on the receiving end of his scrutiny. ..."
— Chaffetz seeks probe of leakers and Flynn's Russian speech — Thomas Burr | The Salt Lake Tribune
"House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz is launching a two-prong response to the White House's latest scandal: Going after the resigned official and the leakers who brought him down. ..."
— Jason Chaffetz Doesn't Care About Ethics — Dahlia Lithwick | Slate
"The Republican in charge of government oversight wants to prohibit criticism of Trump's ethical violations...."
— Is Jason Chaffetz actually doing his job? — Emily Jane Fox | Vanity Fair
" ... He has the power to subpoena the president's tax returns — documents Trump once said he would release at some point, though he has since abandoned that promise.
"That would be doing his job in its truest sense, the way the constituents who showed up to his town hall are asking him to do. Compared to what those tax returns could clear up or uncover, the issue of security protocols at Mar-a-Lago seems quaint."
— Chaffetz is supposed to work for us — Jessica Preece | The Deseret News
" ... It should not surprise Rep. Chaffetz that many of his constituents are uncomfortable with Trump's disrespect for the other branches of government, problematic conflicts of interests, cozy relationship with Putin and Russia, immaturity and carelessness in the execution of his duties, disdain for facts and truth, horrible comments about women, indifference to religious freedom for all, callousness to the plight of refugees and general lack of integrity. My 90-year-old grandmother — a dedicated, lifelong Republican — is beside herself with concern for the republic. ..."