Staff Reports
In the latest saga of government shenanigans, the House Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management took center stage to grill the General Services Administration (GSA) on their selection of a new FBI headquarters site in Maryland. This whole debacle started over a decade ago, and it’s been a wild rollercoaster ride of confusion and controversy ever since.
The GSA thought they had finally nailed down a location, but then FBI Director Christopher Wray dropped a bombshell in the form of an internal email. Wray raised serious concerns about potential conflicts of interest and shady dealings in the site selection process. It turns out the top real estate honcho at the GSA, Nina Albert, who was responsible for picking the new FBI site, used to work for the very organization that owned the Greenbelt property in Maryland. Talk about a sketchy situation!
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On top of that, there was major flip-flopping happening in the GSA’s top brass. Albert left her position and was replaced by Elliot Doomes, who ended up as the GSA’s witness at the subcommittee hearing. But guess what? Albert conveniently couldn’t make it to the hearing. Coincidence? We think not!
Subcommittee Chairman Scott Perry, a no-nonsense representative from the great state of Pennsylvania, wasn’t buying any of this funny business. He grilled Doomes about Albert’s sudden appointment as the site selection authority and the convenient timing of her decisions. Doomes tried to spin a tale about Albert being appointed in July 2021 and having the power to make the big decisions all along, but Perry wasn’t having it.
Then there’s the whole mess of the site selection panel recommending a location in Springfield, Virginia, only for the GSA to surprisingly pick Greenbelt instead. Wray and the panel were blindsided, and it reeks of fishy business. But Doomes had the audacity to claim that Greenbelt was the best choice because of its “transit accessibility” and “impact on the region.” Yeah, right.
Perry didn’t let Doomes off the hook, pointing out the sneaky changes made to the criteria and the jaw-dropping reduction in property costs from over $200 million to a measly $26 million. Who’s footing the bill for this shady deal? The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority – the very organization that used to employ Albert – seems to be involved in some sketchy dealings, especially as they’re getting ready to lay off 2,000 employees. Talk about playing both sides!
But Doomes, trying to save face, couldn’t explain these sudden changes and tried to downplay the GSA’s deviation from panel recommendations as no big deal. Assistant Director of the Finance and Facilities Division at the FBI, Nicholas Dimos, made it clear that these kinds of moves are “exceedingly rare,” and Perry didn’t let up, grilling Doomes about the GSA’s lack of transparency and the questionable decision-making process.
In the end, it’s clear that the GSA’s pick for the new FBI headquarters reeks of backroom deals, conflicts of interest, and suspicious changes to criteria and property costs. They can try to spin it any way they want, but the American people aren’t buying it. It’s time for some real accountability and transparency in government, because this kind of swampy behavior is unacceptable!
