House Democrats on Wednesday escalated their scrutiny of Corey Lewandowski, accusing the longtime political operative of wielding unusual authority inside the Department of Homeland Security.
In a letter sent Wednesday, Reps. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., Rick Larsen, D-Wash., and Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., asked the DHS Office of Inspector General to open a formal investigation into whether Lewandowski, a special government employee, engaged in mismanagement, self-dealing, or other improper conduct while acting as a de facto adviser to then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.
Lewandowski has not publicly responded to the allegations, but Noem directly denied claims about his authority during sworn congressional testimony, saying he had no role in approving DHS contracts.
A DHS spokesperson, reiterating Noem's position, said, "Mr. Lewandowski does NOT play a role in approving contracts," and added that he serves without pay or federal benefits.
Noem and Lewandowski have also previously denied any improper personal relationship or misconduct tied to their work at the department.
The lawmakers also called on DHS to reverse a recently adopted policy that let Lewandowski review or approve contracts and grants worth more than $100,000, warning in a separate letter that the arrangement created a "clear risk of mismanagement, confusion, and self-dealing" inside an agency responsible for border security, disaster response, transportation screening, and other critical missions.
In the document preservation demand, the Democrats said DHS must retain all records tied to Lewandowski's role, including messages, Signal chats, and other private communications related to contracting, personnel matters, and classified material.
"Any effort to hide, steal, alter, or destroy any documentation relating to Mr. Lewandowski, DHS contracting decisions under former Secretary Noem, and related subjects, will be seen as destruction of evidence," they added.
Their latest move builds on months of Democratic oversight pressure over Lewandowski's standing at DHS, including earlier inquiries from Garcia and Thompson after reporting alleged that he had influenced contract decisions, personnel changes, and funding actions while operating with limited public disclosure and while maintaining outside business interests that critics say could create conflicts.
Special government employees are generally limited under federal ethics rules to no more than 130 days of service in any 365-day period, a restriction that has become central to lawmakers' argument that Lewandowski may have exceeded the bounds of his appointment if he was effectively functioning as a full-time senior adviser inside the department.
The renewed investigation comes less than two weeks after President Donald Trump reassigned Noem on March 5 amid intensifying questions about her management of DHS, including a $220 million advertising campaign and her testimony to Congress about Lewandowski's role. On Wednesday, the Senate held a confirmation hearing for Trump's nominee to replace her, Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla.
The issue is unfolding as DHS remains under pressure from a partial government shutdown that began after lawmakers failed to resolve an immigration policy fight, leaving many agency employees working through a prolonged funding lapse and adding to Democratic claims that leadership turmoil and contracting irregularities have raised the risk of further disruption to public safety and disaster operations.
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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