Congress

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

Published

2 months 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

Bill Gates denied association with Epstein’s crimes in closed-door Hill interview

Published

1 hour ago

June 23, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Tech mogul Bill Gates told the House Oversight Committee he was aware of Jeffrey Epstein’s prior sex crime conviction but that he did not know Epstein was continuing to engage in misconduct at the time of their acquaintance, according to a transcript of his testimony.

In his transcribed interview with the panel earlier this month as part of its ongoing Epstein investigation, Gates recounted details of his dealings with Epstein over the years — which extended from 2011, when he was first introduced to Epstein, to 2014, when he realized Epstein would not make good on his promise to steer donors towards Gates’ philanthropic work.

“I was aware that he had a criminal conviction,” Gates said, according to the transcript. “I knew that it was of a sexual nature, but, no, I don’t think I … dug into the specifics, although I probably should have.”

Gates’ decision to shrug off the conviction from 2008 underscored the extent to which many of those who chose to associate with the disgraced financier opted to ignore potential warning signs of impropriety. It was not until more than a decade after his first brush with law enforcement that Epstein was arrested on federal sex crimes charges; he died by suicide in jail in 2019 while his case was pending.

Gates’ relationship with Epstein has drawn new scrutiny since materials released by the Justice Department revealed new details about their relationship. In one draft correspondence contained in the so-called Epstein files, Epstein appears to have written and sent to himself a letter to Gates, where he alleged that Gates asked Epstein to “delete the emails regarding [his] std” and give him antibiotics to “surreptitiously give to Melinda [French Gates].”

Gates has denied that allegation and, during his interview with the Oversight Committee, Gates questioned whether Epstein was attempting to blackmail him.

“Now that I see the January release of documents, it appears that in many cases he, at least in emails to himself, was sort of rehearsing how either he or he coaching someone else might choose to blackmail me, but none of those messages were ever sent to me,” Gates said. “You know, I never paid Jeffrey Epstein anything.”

He also said that Epstein “certainly wasn’t a friend,” and insisted he never engaged in sexual conduct or received massages from individuals introduced to him by Epstein. And despite knowledge of his 2008 conviction, Gates said he was unaware at the time of their relationship that Epstein was a registered sex offender. He also said he never visited Epstein’s island.

The Oversight Committee also on Tuesday released a transcript of its June interview with Lesley Groff, one of Epstein’s former assistants who was among those named as a potential co-conspirator as part of Epstein’s non-prosecution agreement in 2007. She was never charged with any wrongdoing and, according to the transcript, recalled that law enforcement’s decision came as a surprise.

“I am not a conspirator, and I never would have agreed to this language,” she said, according to the transcript. “Their unilateral decision to label me as a potential conspirator remains my scarlet letter.”

Like others who have come before the panel, Groff claimed she was unaware of his crimes during the time of her employment and that Epstein, following his 2008 conviction, said that he was “set up.” Groff said she believed him, so she continued to work for him.

“I also saw the same VIPs continue to surround Epstein after his conviction,” she explained as a rationale for maintaining her own ties.

For instance, Groff told the Oversight Committee she “would connect phone calls” between President Donald Trump and Epstein multiple times a year.

Trump has not been charged with any wrongdoing tied to Epstein, but his relationship with the financier has raised eyebrows while fueling speculation that the administration has been working to cover up its connections — including by pushing back against making the Epstein files public last year and then slow-walking their release.

The Justice Department has defended its handling of the files’ release, and Trump has maintained he broke off his relationship with Epstein years before his death.

Congress

Senate votes to halt Iran war despite Trump’s push for peace deal

Published

3 hours ago

June 23, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The Senate on Tuesday voted to cut off the U.S. military campaign against Iran, handing a fresh loss to President Donald Trump despite his attempts to convince lawmakers and the public that a deal to end the war is at hand.

Four Republicans broke ranks to help approve a resolution to block further military action unless it is green-lighted by Congress.

The war powers measure is largely symbolic — the resolution cleared Tuesday doesn’t go to the president to sign or veto. But the bipartisan 50-48 vote is a damaging milestone for the Trump administration: Both the Senate and House have now weighed in against the Middle East conflict that’s stretched on for more than 100 days. The same measure passed the House in early June after months of close calls.

Congress

Housing bill threatened in GOP elections-bill spat

Published

4 hours ago

June 23, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The long-anticipated bipartisan housing bill is under threat from a Florida Republican who threatened to “shut the floor down” if House GOP leaders move forward with passing it Tuesday.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna said Republicans instead need to prioritize passage of the SAVE America Act, the GOP elections bill that has been stuck in the Senate for months. Speaker Mike Johnson has scheduled a Tuesday evening vote on the housing bill in hopes of sending it to President Donald Trump for a planned Wednesday signing at the White House.

Luna posted her threat on social media Tuesday afternoon and later specified in an interview that she would oppose procedural measures teeing up GOP-backed legislation going forward if party leaders didn’t abandon their plans to hold the housing bill vote via special fast-track procedures that would effectively sideline Republican hard-liners.

Luna cannot single-handedly block those procedural votes, but she said there is “a group” of lawmakers who would join her. She separately called on Trump to veto the housing bill in a bid to force the SAVE America Act to be added to it.

Johnson plans for now to proceed with the Tuesday evening vote on the housing bill, according to two people granted anonymity to discuss internal conversations. If Luna and her unnamed allies follow through with their threats, they could derail a pair of appropriations bills set for House consideration this week and potentially freeze the floor indefinitely given the GOP’s razor-thin majority.

“I have been telling them,” Luna said of her complaints to GOP leaders.