At a shadow hearing held by Congressional Democrats on Monday, former Pardon Attorney Liz Oyer spoke about the efforts from the Trump administration to prevent her from testifying.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Ms. O'Heir, why don't you start us off.
00:04Thank you very much.
00:07Exactly one month ago today.
00:09Can you turn your mic on or bring it close?
00:13Can you hear me now?
00:14A little closer if you would.
00:16How's that?
00:18Better, thank you.
00:20Thank you for having me.
00:22Exactly one month ago, I was terminated from my job as the Justice Department's pardon
00:27attorney.
00:28The pardon attorney is a non-political position that is entrusted with advising the president
00:33about the exercise of his constitutional clemency power.
00:37When I was fired, there were over 6,000 applications pending from ordinary Americans around the
00:43country who were seeking the president's mercy and second chances through clemency.
00:50I had planned to talk today about the events leading up to my firing, but some more recent
00:56developments have persuaded me to focus my time on the callous cruelty with which DOJ
01:04leadership is treating dedicated public servants like myself.
01:10For me, this began with my abrupt firing.
01:14It was 2 o'clock on a Friday afternoon.
01:16I was in a conference room meeting with colleagues from several different DOJ offices.
01:21We were brainstorming about how to implement a priority of the attorney general.
01:26Halfway through the meeting, I was frantically pulled out by my deputy.
01:31In the hallway, she broke the news to me that security officers were waiting for me in my
01:37office to serve me with termination papers and escort me out of the building.
01:42I rushed back to my office.
01:44There, I was handed a three-sentence memo signed by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche
01:50firing me effective immediately.
01:53I had never met Mr. Blanche, and I received no explanation for his decision.
02:01That afternoon, I walked out of the building for the last time carrying a grocery bag filled
02:05with my personal effects.
02:08I had no time to say goodbye to my team.
02:11I was in shock.
02:13Everyone I passed on the way out was looking on in shock and horror.
02:19I want Deputy Attorney General Blanche and Attorney General Bondi to know it is traumatic
02:25for everyone in an entire organization to see a beloved colleague and leader treated
02:32that way.
02:35My heart aches for my colleagues who had to go back into that office on Monday with no
02:41explanation from DOJ leadership and no assurances about what the future holds for them.
02:49They are good, dedicated people, and they deserve better.
02:56After I was fired, I chose to speak publicly about the events leading up to my termination.
03:01I felt that it was my obligation to share my concerns about the reckless and unethical
03:07use of department resources to accomplish political objectives, including favors for
03:13loyalists and friends.
03:17Shortly after I did so, Mr. Blanche contacted the media to accuse me of lying.
03:23This still puzzles me because his staff has all of the memos and emails that substantiate
03:29everything I have ever said.
03:33I requested those documents through FOIA, but Mr. Blanche's staff still has not produced
03:39them.
03:43I have made some other simple requests of the department since my firing.
03:47One was for my annual performance evaluations, which show that I received outstanding ratings
03:52every year.
03:54One was for personnel documents that I would need to file for unemployment.
03:59DOJ responded to me that these were complex requests, and I could not expect a response
04:05in any reasonable period of time.
04:09For weeks after my firing, DOJ also refused to provide me with documents about my benefits,
04:16including my health insurance and including my retirement plan.
04:21Finally, on April 2nd, after my requests got some media attention, I got an email advising
04:28me that my health insurance would expire in five days.
04:33I learned that to extend my coverage, the cost to me and my family would more than quadruple.
04:39I was told that to keep my family members covered, I would have to prove my familial
04:44relationships with them.
04:45I was told that I would need to provide my marriage certificate, the birth certificate
04:49of my child, and proof of a common residence or joint tax filings with my spouse.
04:59Perhaps the most personally upsetting part of the story is the lengths to which the leadership
05:04of the department has gone to prevent me from testifying here today.
05:11On Friday night, around 9.15, I learned that the Deputy Attorney General's Office had directed
05:19the Department of Security and Emergency Planning Service to send two armed Special Deputy U.S.
05:27officials to my home to serve me with a letter.
05:33The letter was to be served at my home between 9 o'clock and 10 o'clock on Friday night.
05:39I was in the car with my husband and my parents, who are sitting behind me today, when I got
05:44the news that the officers were on their way to my house where my teenage child was home alone.
05:52Fortunately, due to the grace of a very decent person who understood how upsetting this would
05:58be to my family, I was able to confirm receipt of the letter to an email address, and the
06:05deputies were called off.
06:08The letter had been emailed to me just before 8 o'clock that night.
06:13At no point did Mr. Blanche's staff pick up the phone and call me before they sent armed
06:19deputies to my home.
06:27The letter was a warning to me about the risks of testifying here today, but I am here because
06:35I will not be bullied into concealing the ongoing corruption and abuse of power at the
06:41Department of Justice.
06:42DOJ is entrusted with keeping us safe, upholding the rule of law, and protecting our civil
06:49rights.
06:50It is not a personal favor bank for the President.
06:55Its career employees are not the President's personal debt collectors.
07:03I see only Democratic members here today, but this is not a partisan issue.
07:09It should alarm all Americans that the leadership of the Department of Justice appears to value
07:15political loyalty above the fair and responsible administration of justice.
07:22It should offend all Americans that our leaders are treating public servants with a lack of
07:29basic decency and humanity.
07:35Thank you for your testimony and for the courage you're demonstrating by being here.