{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/markey-no-excuse-for-political-witch-hunts-at-dept-of-energy-or-any-federal-agency", "Markey: No Excuse for Political Witch Hunts at Dept. of Energy or Any Federal Agency", "2016-12-14", "2016", "2016-12", "Democrat", "House", "MA", "Edward Markey", "M000133", "www.markey.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Markey: No Excuse for Political Witch Hunts at Dept. of Energy or Any Federal Agency \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tWednesday, December 14, 2016\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tTrump transition team disavows questionnaire sent last week to Energy Dept. after Senator Markey denounced inquiry requesting names of staff working on climate and clean energy issues\r\n\r\nWashington (December 14, 2016) \u2013 Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee and chair of the Senate Climate Clearinghouse, released the following statement today after President-elect Donald Trump\u2019s transition team disavowed the questionnaire sent last week to the Department of Energy (DOE) requesting a list of employees and contractors who helped develop the current administration\u2019s energy and climate policies. Senator Markey sent a letter last week denouncing the effort, calling it \u201ctantamount to an illegal modern-day political witch hunt\u201d.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\u201cThe Trump transition team was right to abandon its effort to conduct a politically-motivated witch hunt at the Department of Energy, and President-elect Trump should commit to never attempt this type of inquisition at any other federal agency ever again\u201d\u00a0said Senator Markey.\u201cThis kind of inquiry is illegal and undermines the commitment to a peaceful transition of power by the Trump administration. No federal civil servant should be punished or fear that they may show up on a political \u2018hit list\u2019 simply for doing their jobs, even if the new administration disagrees with current policies and programs. I will continue to defend the federal workforce \u200eat the Department of Energy and all other federal agencies so that they can continue to do the vital work necessary for an effective government that helps all Americans.\u201d\r\n\u00a0\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.markey.senate.gov/news/press-releases/markey-no-excuse-for-political-witch-hunts-at-dept-of-energy-or-any-federal-agency"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9733440820127726, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}