Issa hits back at Obama over campaign mailer

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) pushed back on Monday against President Obama calling him “shameless” for touting cooperation with the White House after serving as its chief antagonist for five years.

The 25-year incumbent is facing a tougher-than-expected reelection this year against Democratic challenger Doug Applegate, in large part because of Issa’s support for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.

Issa accused Obama of trying to brush off GOP attempts to hold the Obama administration accountable. 

{mosads}“I’m disappointed but not surprised that the president, in a political speech, continues to deny accountability for the serious scandals that happened under his watch where Americans died overseas and veterans have died here at home,” Issa said in a statement.

“I’ve worked with the administration on good legislation where it was possible, and called out wrongdoing wherever I saw it, and will continue to do so.”

Issa gave the Obama administration headaches while serving as chairman of the House Oversight Committee from 2011 to 2015 by pushing to hold former Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress and conducting hearings on the IRS and 2012 Benghazi attacks.

Yet in an attempt to burnish his bipartisan credentials, Issa recently used a photo of President Obama in a campaign mailer touting his support of a bill to help sexual assault survivors.

Obama called the mailer “the definition of chutzpah” at a fundraiser on Sunday night for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

“Here’s a guy who called my administration perhaps the most corrupt in history — despite the fact that actually we have not had a major scandal in my administration — that, when Trump was suggesting that I wasn’t even born here, said, well, I don’t know, was not sure. We can pull up the quotes,” Obama said. 

“And now he’s sending out brochures touting his cooperation with me. Now, that is shameless.”