Congress

Key Democrat seeks inspector general probe into FAA chief’s airline stock divestment

Published

2 hours ago

April 23, 2026

The Senate Commerce Committee’s top Democrat is calling on the Transportation Department’s independent watchdog to launch an investigation into whether Federal Aviation Administration Chief Bryan Bedford “profited from deliberately violating his ethics agreement” by not divesting from an airline company — which he once ran — during a stipulated time frame last year.

Bedford had vowed in that agreement to dispose of his equity in the parent corporation of Republic Airways, the regional carrier he presided over before joining the Trump administration, within 90 days of being confirmed to head the FAA. But he failed to meet that early October deadline, unloading millions of dollars in stock afterward, ethics documents he filed show.

In a Wednesday letter to acting DOT inspector general Mitch Behm, first reported by Blue Light News, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and other Democratic lawmakers alleged that Bedford might have intentionally breached his agreement by waiting to divest his stock until after Republic Airways Holdings completed a merger with another regional airline company, Mesa Air Group.

Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) signed the letter, too.

“We also have serious concerns about the veracity of Mr. Bedford’s shifting explanations for violating” his pledge, the trio said. Bedford ultimately divested his shares fully by late February, disclosing that he sold between $5.5 million and $26.2 million this year.

The lawmakers asked that Behm probe if the FAA chief “made material misrepresentations to Congress or the Office of Government Ethics” and urged him to dig into whether “any disciplinary or corrective actions are warranted,” including having Bedford relinquish “any excess capital gains he has realized.”

They argued that it appears he could have sold his stock on time, adding that the reason for his “divestiture obligation is obvious”: He holds significant sway over the regional airline industry as FAA administrator.

The agency told Blue Light News it will respond to the lawmakers directly and noted that Bedford has divested his stock. Republic Airways Holdings didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Bedford previously defended himself during congressional testimony in December, saying, in part, that he followed career ethics officials’ advice.

He added: “I played it right down the fairway, completely transparent, open, honest about where I was at, what I was trying to accomplish.”

The inspector general’s office confirmed to Blue Light News that it received and will review the senators’ letter but otherwise has no comment for now.

Bedford retired as chief executive officer and president at Republic Airways Holdings, a private firm, on July 1, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The Senate OK’d him a little over a week later.

Under the terms of his ethics agreement, Bedford committed to divesting from the company no later than Oct. 7.

But in paperwork he signed that day, first reported in November by POLITICO, Bedford said he had yet to ditch his stock. He added that he would remain recused from any matters affecting the carrier’s financial interests while he retained his equity and was seeking an extension of his deadline.

He contacted Judith Kaleta, DOT’s deputy general counsel, to request another 60 days, citing his busy work schedule.

Kaleta wrote to OGE, the federal government’s central ethics office, urging it to grant Bedford’s ask.

Then, there seemed to be a misunderstanding. In an October conversation with OGE, outlined in a later email exchange, Kaleta recalled that “it was not clear to me that [the office] had reached a formal decision on the request.”

But OGE on Dec. 1 informed Kaleta in writing that it wouldn’t grant Bedford an extension and inquired about whether he had divested, saying the office would alert the Senate to the issue. Subsequently, Kaleta argued that she had thought Bedford’s ask was still unresolved; OGE responded: “We were not aware you believed the request for an amendment was still pending. … We conveyed being busy with your position did not constitute an ‘unusual hardship.’”

By this point, Republic Airways Holdings and Mesa Air Group had merged; the finalized deal was announced in late November. The combined carrier became publicly traded.

Kaleta didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. Patrick Shepherd, an OGE spokesperson, in a statement said the office is “committed to transparency and citizen oversight of government” but doesn’t respond to questions about specific individuals.

Under the merger, Bedford was able to turn 16,733 private shares into “at least” 652,475 shares in the merged entity, according to the Democrats’ Wednesday letter, which cites an SEC filing.

OGE notified Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) of Bedford’s ethics agreement violation on Dec. 8, and Cantwell expressed outrage over the matter.

During a Senate aviation subcommittee hearing later that month, Bedford faced sharp questions from some Democrats about the topic. He argued that he had simply followed the advice of career ethics officials; he was appropriately recusing himself in the meantime; and his hands were now tied due to the merger, with his stock “terminated.”

“I’m waiting for the shares to be reissued under the new organizational structure,” he said, apparently referring to the combined company, which is still called Republic Airways Holdings.

But he added: “My intention was always to complete the merger and to sell the shares in the market. That was my intention coming into government.”

His ethics agreement made no mention of this, and the Democrats’ Wednesday letter homed in on his testimony before the subcommittee.

Bedford disclosed in March that he had completed his divestment as of Feb. 20.

In a separate ethics document released in April, he noted that he had sold between $5.5 million and $26.2 million in stock in the company since the beginning of this year. Federal officials like Bedford only report transaction amounts in wide ranges.

Further complicating the situation, Bedford in that paperwork also revealed a sale of up to $5 million in stock on Oct. 21, the trio of Democrats said in their letter. This occurred after his ethics agreement deadline but before the merger was completed.

Bedford “never mentioned this transaction in his official correspondence or congressional testimony in December,” they said.

It appears, the lawmakers said, that Bedford was capable of fully divesting on time.

At close on Nov. 26, the day after the announcement of the merger’s completion, Republic Airways Holdings was trading at $21 per share. It stood at $19.75 on Feb. 20.

Congress

‘Junior reporters’ pepper Hakeem Jeffries with tough questions

Published

7 minutes ago

April 23, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Hakeem Jeffries celebrated Take Your Child to Work Day by taking questions from the children of the Capitol Hill press corps, but it got heavy fast.

The first question: “Why do voters view Democrats so poorly?”

Jeffries responded with a lengthy explanation of broad voter distrust in institutions.

“There’s a great frustration that applies to every organized institution in this country, and Democrats are not immune from that,” he said.

But, Jeffries added, “Consistently in state after state and race after race and contest after contest, irrefutably, the American people are choosing the Democratic Party.”

He fielded other tough questions from the “junior reporters” in the room, including if he would have voted to expel Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick if she hadn’t resigned earlier this week.

“She did the right thing in stepping down,” Jeffries said.

Other questions from kids in the room did tackle lighter subjects.

Jeffries’ favorite candy? Sugar-free Hershey’s chocolate.

What did he want to be when he grew up? A point guard for the Knicks or a hip-hop star.

Does he think the Yankees will win the World Series? “Hope springs eternal.”

And, simply, “What’s next?”

To that Jeffries said: “As Democrats, we’re fighting one battle after another, pushing back against the extremism that we believe is being released on the American people by Donald Trump and my colleagues on the other side of the aisle.”

Congress

Trump ally Ronny Jackson weighs bid for top House Armed Services spot

Published

21 minutes ago

April 23, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Rep. Ronny Jackson, a conservative ally of President Donald Trump, is considering jumping into the race to fill the top GOP spot on the House Armed Services Committee after the midterms.

The three-term Texas Republican said Thursday he’d likely need to make a decision “soon” about joining the field — which already includes Reps. Rob Wittman (R-Va.) and Trent Kelly (R-Miss.). But he added that he won’t base his decision off other candidates or events, like this week’s Virginia redistricting referendum that threatens Wittman’s reelection.

“If I do it, I’m going to do it regardless of any other factors,” Jackson said. “It’s not going to be related to anything else that’s going on or anybody else that’s running.”

Dark horse: Jackson — a retired Navy officer and former White House physician — chairs the House Armed Services Intelligence and Special Operations Subcommittee. But two members with more seniority who are also subcommittee chairs, Wittman and Kelly, have already said they intend to run. Current Armed Services Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), who is term-limited, could also seek a waiver to keep the top spot.

That would make Jackson a dark horse candidate. But Jackson dismissed concerns about his lack of seniority, pointing instead to his military record.

“That’s not the way we operate here in the House. And it’s not the way we operate in the Republican Party. Everything’s not based on seniority,” Jackson told reporters. “It should be the right person for the job, and if I feel like I’m the right person for the job, then I’ll put my name in the hat.”

“I may not have been here in Congress as long as some people, but I have 25 years in the United States Navy. That counts for something,” he said.

From the right: Should he run, Jackson would arguably be the most conservative of the prospective Armed Services candidates.

He notably led Republicans in pushing a contentious amendment to the House defense policy bill in 2023 to block a Biden-era Pentagon policy reimbursing troops who needed to travel across state lines to seek abortions following the reversal of Roe v. Wade protections. The proposal’s adoption resulted in Democrats opposing the defense bill. The amendment was later dropped from a final bill, but the Trump administration ultimately repealed the policy.

Trump ties: Jackson could leverage his close ties to Trump and the White House if he runs. He served as Trump’s physician during the president’s first term, as well as for former President Barack Obama before that.

Trump tapped Jackson to be Veterans Affairs secretary in 2018, but his nomination foundered amid allegations of unprofessional behavior during his tenure leading the White House medical unit, later detailed in a Pentagon inspector general investigation. The Navy later demoted him from rear admiral to captain in retirement.

Jackson cast the demotion as political retribution by the Biden administration. He was reinstated to the rank of one-star admiral last year by the Trump administration.

Congress

Capitol agenda: Senate GOP braces for Cabinet shakeup

Published

4 hours ago

April 23, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The Trump administration saw yet another high-profile departure Wednesday, with Navy Secretary John Phelan heading to the exits. Senate Republicans are bracing for even more.

President Donald Trump’s recent administration shakeup — the sacking of Kristi Noem and Pam Bondi as well as this week’s departure of Lori Chavez-DeRemer — has created openings for a slew of potential confirmations, and GOP senators are contemplating who might be next and how quickly Trump should make any further changes.

No Republicans are publicly urging any particular oustings. But privately GOP senators believe Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and FBI Director Kash Patel could be at risk of leaving — voluntarily or not.

“He’s in a bad mood,” one GOP senator said about Trump. “He’s preparing to really let a lot of them go.”

A further Cabinet shakeup would add more onto the Senate’s plate, and some GOP senators want anyone eyeing an exit to do it sooner rather than later to give the lawmakers the longest runway possible for confirming a successor.

On their minds is looming work on a budget reconciliation bill (maybe two), soon-to-lapse surveillance powers, a spate of lower-level nominations plus a potential Supreme Court vacancy.

“The number of working days are very limited,” Sen. Thom Tillis said in an interview. “You just do the math. It’s a very compressed schedule.”

That’s not to mention the looming midterms — and the possibility the GOP could lose control of the chamber.

Another GOP senator granted anonymity to speak candidly said that it would “make sense to do it now” and “you never know what’s going to happen to the Senate” in the midterms.

But several acknowledged the obvious: Trump will move on his own timeline.

And Majority Leader John Thune said the Senate already has a “full plate, so confirming new people is going to take a while.”

What else we’re watching:

— Eyes on the House after Senate vote-a-rama: Just after 3:30 a.m., the Senate voted 50-48 to green-light the GOP’s plan to send tens of billions of dollars to immigration enforcement agencies in the coming years. Now House Republicans need to approve the budget blueprint before GOP leaders can move on to crafting the party-line package itself. Thune told reporters that Speaker Mike Johnson hasn’t guaranteed the House can adopt the budget resolution in its current form.

— The latest on 702: Thune early Thursday also filed cloture on a three-year extension of the key spy authority known as Section 702 — an insurance policy in case the House can’t agree to a plan. “If the House can’t move by sometime tomorrow, then my assumption is we’re going to have to figure it out next week because we can’t afford to go dark,” he said.

Jennifer Scholtes contributed to this report.