Restore Public Trust asks Senate committee to refer Chad Wolf to the Department of Justice for an investigation into his false testimony

WASHINGTON – Restore Public Trust sent a letter today asking that a Senate committee refer Chad Wolf to the Department of Justice for an investigation into Wolf for potentially lying under oath about his role in developing the administration’s horrific family separation policy. Wolf is Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and he is expected to assume the acting role next week.

Restore Public Trust released the following statement in response:

“Chad Wolf lied to Congress about his role in developing the family separation policy,” said Kyle Herrig, senior advisor to Restore Public Trust. “Not only did Wolf promote the administration’s horrific policy of separating families at the border, but evidence suggests he gave false testimony during his confirmation hearing to be undersecretary at the Department of Homeland Security when he claimed not to have been involved in developing the policy in the first place. The Justice Department should immediately investigate. The public has a right to know the full extent of Wolf’s dishonesty and disloyalty.”

The group’s letter, addressed to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs, outlines evidence that Wolf lied under oath during his June 2019 confirmation hearing when he claimed that he did not help develop the administration’s zero-tolerance policy, and that he first became aware of the policy in April 2018. Despite Wolf’s claims, we know that:

• An email Wolf sent to a counselor of then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions in December 2017 with a list of 16 options to curb the number of undocumented immigrants. The list included family separation and expedited child deportation; in fact, “separate family units” was number two on the list.

• A scheduled phone call on Wolf’s calendar for March 15, 2018 with Ryan Scudder, the deputy chief patrol agent of the El Centro Sector of U.S. Customs and Border Patrol. The calendar entry states that “Ryan wanted to touch base with you regarding the meeting you requested to take place regarding ‘Separating Children and Families.’”

• A “Family Separation Issue/Hill Prep Meeting” that Wolf attended on March 19, 2018. The objective of this meeting was “to discuss the issue of family separation as well as DNA and fingerprinting issues . . .”

Read Restore Public Trust’s full letter to Congress here.

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