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Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin gives Rep. Maxine Waters instructions on how to use her gavel. The advice was not appreciated. (Photo: screenshot, CSPAN)
Maxine Waters Holds the Gavel as Treasury Secretary Mnuchin Has Tantrum Over Length of Oversight Hearing
"Please do not instruct me as to how I am to conduct this committee."
Apr 10, 2019
In the latest contest between Democrats and the administration, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin told Rep. Maxine Waters that he wouldn't come back to Congress if forced to stay past 5:15pm.
The comment came as part of a testy exchange between Mnuchin and the California Democrat during Mnuchin's testimony to the House Committee on Financial Services Tuesday.
The secretary told Waters that he was in a time crunch and needed to be in a meeting with a high ranking Bahraini official by 5:30pm--a change to the schedule that he only informed Waters, the chair of the committee, about the day before.
The scheduling didn't sit well with Waters.
"No other secretary has ever told us the day before that they were going to limit their time," Waters said.
Waters asked Mnuchin for another 15 minutes, pointing out that the secretary was not the only one short on time.
"We're late all the time, unfortunately," said Waters. "We are all pressed for time."
But Mnuchin, who pointed to the Bahraini official waiting in his office, refused the request, saying that further delay would be "very embarrassing" for the secretary. Mnuchin then sarcastically offered to stay, an offer that Waters said she'd take him up on.
\u201cRep. Waters telling Mnuchin \u201cif you wish to leave, you may\u201d and then countering his disingenuous offer to remain at the hearing with \u201cthank you, the gentleman, the secretary, has agreed to stay\u201d is honestly perfectly played\u201d— Sarah Lerner (@Sarah Lerner) 1554868665
That sparked a back and forth between Waters and Mnuchin in which the secretary threatened not to return to the committee if forced to remain past the time he had given the committee the previous afternoon.
"I will cancel my meeting and I will not be back here," said Mnuchin. "I will be very clear, if that's the way you'd like to have this relationship."
\u201cMnuchin asks to be dismissed. Waters says no.\u201d— Manu Raju (@Manu Raju) 1554849762
The pair continued to spar for another minute or so--an exchange punctuated with Mnuchin imitating Waters using her gavel.
"Please do not instruct me as to how I am to conduct this committee," said Waters in response.
\u201cIn testy exchange, Rep. Maxine Waters tells Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, "no other secretary has ever told us the day before that they were going to limit their time."\n\n"You're ordering me to stay here .... that's not what I want to do," Mnuchin says https://t.co/tFCpfQzXeL\u201d— ABC News Politics (@ABC News Politics) 1554845309
In the end, Waters and Mnuchin came to an agreement and the secretary left for his meeting at 5:30. The two will face off again in May.
In an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper later Tuesday, Waters continued her criticisms of Mnuchin.
"I don't think there's anything or anybody more important than the Congress of the United States of America trying to find out exactly what the secretary is doing," Waters told Cooper.
\u201c\u201cHe wanted me to order him or to shut down the committee... to use the gavel to say the committee was adjourned for his purposes.\u201d\n\nFinancial Services Comm. Chair Rep. Maxine Waters explains her side of a verbal clash she had with Treasury Sec. Mnuchin over a scheduling issue.\u201d— CNN (@CNN) 1554860405
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In the latest contest between Democrats and the administration, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin told Rep. Maxine Waters that he wouldn't come back to Congress if forced to stay past 5:15pm.
The comment came as part of a testy exchange between Mnuchin and the California Democrat during Mnuchin's testimony to the House Committee on Financial Services Tuesday.
The secretary told Waters that he was in a time crunch and needed to be in a meeting with a high ranking Bahraini official by 5:30pm--a change to the schedule that he only informed Waters, the chair of the committee, about the day before.
The scheduling didn't sit well with Waters.
"No other secretary has ever told us the day before that they were going to limit their time," Waters said.
Waters asked Mnuchin for another 15 minutes, pointing out that the secretary was not the only one short on time.
"We're late all the time, unfortunately," said Waters. "We are all pressed for time."
But Mnuchin, who pointed to the Bahraini official waiting in his office, refused the request, saying that further delay would be "very embarrassing" for the secretary. Mnuchin then sarcastically offered to stay, an offer that Waters said she'd take him up on.
\u201cRep. Waters telling Mnuchin \u201cif you wish to leave, you may\u201d and then countering his disingenuous offer to remain at the hearing with \u201cthank you, the gentleman, the secretary, has agreed to stay\u201d is honestly perfectly played\u201d— Sarah Lerner (@Sarah Lerner) 1554868665
That sparked a back and forth between Waters and Mnuchin in which the secretary threatened not to return to the committee if forced to remain past the time he had given the committee the previous afternoon.
"I will cancel my meeting and I will not be back here," said Mnuchin. "I will be very clear, if that's the way you'd like to have this relationship."
\u201cMnuchin asks to be dismissed. Waters says no.\u201d— Manu Raju (@Manu Raju) 1554849762
The pair continued to spar for another minute or so--an exchange punctuated with Mnuchin imitating Waters using her gavel.
"Please do not instruct me as to how I am to conduct this committee," said Waters in response.
\u201cIn testy exchange, Rep. Maxine Waters tells Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, "no other secretary has ever told us the day before that they were going to limit their time."\n\n"You're ordering me to stay here .... that's not what I want to do," Mnuchin says https://t.co/tFCpfQzXeL\u201d— ABC News Politics (@ABC News Politics) 1554845309
In the end, Waters and Mnuchin came to an agreement and the secretary left for his meeting at 5:30. The two will face off again in May.
In an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper later Tuesday, Waters continued her criticisms of Mnuchin.
"I don't think there's anything or anybody more important than the Congress of the United States of America trying to find out exactly what the secretary is doing," Waters told Cooper.
\u201c\u201cHe wanted me to order him or to shut down the committee... to use the gavel to say the committee was adjourned for his purposes.\u201d\n\nFinancial Services Comm. Chair Rep. Maxine Waters explains her side of a verbal clash she had with Treasury Sec. Mnuchin over a scheduling issue.\u201d— CNN (@CNN) 1554860405
In the latest contest between Democrats and the administration, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin told Rep. Maxine Waters that he wouldn't come back to Congress if forced to stay past 5:15pm.
The comment came as part of a testy exchange between Mnuchin and the California Democrat during Mnuchin's testimony to the House Committee on Financial Services Tuesday.
The secretary told Waters that he was in a time crunch and needed to be in a meeting with a high ranking Bahraini official by 5:30pm--a change to the schedule that he only informed Waters, the chair of the committee, about the day before.
The scheduling didn't sit well with Waters.
"No other secretary has ever told us the day before that they were going to limit their time," Waters said.
Waters asked Mnuchin for another 15 minutes, pointing out that the secretary was not the only one short on time.
"We're late all the time, unfortunately," said Waters. "We are all pressed for time."
But Mnuchin, who pointed to the Bahraini official waiting in his office, refused the request, saying that further delay would be "very embarrassing" for the secretary. Mnuchin then sarcastically offered to stay, an offer that Waters said she'd take him up on.
\u201cRep. Waters telling Mnuchin \u201cif you wish to leave, you may\u201d and then countering his disingenuous offer to remain at the hearing with \u201cthank you, the gentleman, the secretary, has agreed to stay\u201d is honestly perfectly played\u201d— Sarah Lerner (@Sarah Lerner) 1554868665
That sparked a back and forth between Waters and Mnuchin in which the secretary threatened not to return to the committee if forced to remain past the time he had given the committee the previous afternoon.
"I will cancel my meeting and I will not be back here," said Mnuchin. "I will be very clear, if that's the way you'd like to have this relationship."
\u201cMnuchin asks to be dismissed. Waters says no.\u201d— Manu Raju (@Manu Raju) 1554849762
The pair continued to spar for another minute or so--an exchange punctuated with Mnuchin imitating Waters using her gavel.
"Please do not instruct me as to how I am to conduct this committee," said Waters in response.
\u201cIn testy exchange, Rep. Maxine Waters tells Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, "no other secretary has ever told us the day before that they were going to limit their time."\n\n"You're ordering me to stay here .... that's not what I want to do," Mnuchin says https://t.co/tFCpfQzXeL\u201d— ABC News Politics (@ABC News Politics) 1554845309
In the end, Waters and Mnuchin came to an agreement and the secretary left for his meeting at 5:30. The two will face off again in May.
In an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper later Tuesday, Waters continued her criticisms of Mnuchin.
"I don't think there's anything or anybody more important than the Congress of the United States of America trying to find out exactly what the secretary is doing," Waters told Cooper.
\u201c\u201cHe wanted me to order him or to shut down the committee... to use the gavel to say the committee was adjourned for his purposes.\u201d\n\nFinancial Services Comm. Chair Rep. Maxine Waters explains her side of a verbal clash she had with Treasury Sec. Mnuchin over a scheduling issue.\u201d— CNN (@CNN) 1554860405
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