Fox's first appearance: The State Department is facing increasing pressure to release information about its climate change office employees after they filed a new lawsuit accusing them of sabotage.
Energy watchdog group Power the Future (PTF) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request in January seeking an unredacted list of John Kerry's former Special Presidential Envoy for Climate Change (SPEC) staff.
Fox News Digital previously reported that SPEC has an estimated $13.9 million annual budget from the State Department and approval for a 45-person staff, but Kelly has long remained silent about his climate change staff.
PTF filed a lawsuit against the State Department in February after it reported delays in disclosing the names and titles of Kelly's staff, which it said were heavily redacted in the original release. According to reports, as of September, the ministry had not disclosed all members of its climate change office, meaning the PTF needed to take further action.
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Former US Secretary of State John Kerry attends the Viva Technology Show held at Parc des Expositions Porte de Versailles in Paris, France on May 23, 2024. (Chess knot)
A new PTF complaint filed on October 3 alleges that the Biden administration's “climate” operation at SPEC exhibits a “clear pattern and practice” of delayed FOIA responses.
The lawsuit is one of 14 filed by PTF against the State Department, which also names the Justice Department and the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia for withholding information from the public about SPEC's activities. .
“For years, Power the Future has sought legitimate information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) about the John Kerry Climate Change Office, its budget, staff, mandate, and external coordination; “No,” PTF founder and executive director Daniel Tuner told FOX News Digital.
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The lawsuit also alleges that the agency violates Congressional standards regarding FOIA response times.
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“Despite previous lawsuits, the current administration continues to orchestrate a blockade to prevent information about this secret office from reaching the public, especially before the November election,” Turner said. “John Kerry is not above the law, and his weaponizing of federal institutions and turning them into political machines shows a level of corruption typical of the Green movement, but extremely dangerous for the federal government. This is concerning.”
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The House Oversight Committee has launched an investigation into SPEC's office regarding potential conflicts of interest between SPEC's staff and “left-wing environmental groups.”
Kerry resigned as Biden's climate envoy in January and was replaced by John Podesta.
Efforts to reach the State Department, Department of Justice, SPEC, and the D.C. Attorney's Office were unsuccessful.
