Who?
Rep. James Comer (R-KY) — Chair, House Oversight Committee
LISTEN: Laslo & Comer
Ask a Pol asks:
What do you make of former AARO Director Tim Phillips’ accusation that GOP leaders like you who kept the Congressional UAP Caucus from getting classified briefings on SAPs or Special Access Programs?
Key Comer:
“I don’t know,” US House Oversight Chair James Comer exclusively tells Ask a Pol. “It’s not me.”
ICYMI — AARO’s are flying…
CONFIRMED (from the source this time):
So you did give Chair Anna Paulina Luna a six month extension of the Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets?
“I'm gonna do whatever she wants,” Comer says. “Yeah.”
ICYMI — Ask a Pol even fact checks Ask a Pol…
Caught our ear:
“You assume that the administration's left damning evidence behind,” Comer tells us. “There's no guarantee that the files weren't destroyed.”
Below find a rough transcript of Ask a Pol’s exclusive interview with Rep. James Comer (R-KY), slightly edited for clarity.
TRANSCRIPT: Rep. James Comer (6-25-2025)
SCENE: Ask a Pol’s Matt Laslo is traversing the mostly empty marble halls of the US Capitol ahead of a House vote when he hears Oversight Committee Chair James Comer’s — who Laslo used to cover for Kentucky Public Radio — voice down an escalator.
Laslo pretends to twiddle his thumbs for a few seconds and then acts surprised to see Comer and his small entourage aides. They proceed to hop an elevator up to the first floor where Comer’s going to meet with visitors.
Substack skeptical? So. Are. We.
Support us on whatever platform you trust and we’ll add you to our VIP list!
Ask a Pol’s on Venmo, PayPal, Cash App — or just buy us a beer!
Matt Laslo: “Look at this young man!”
James Comer: “How you doing buddy?”
ML: “How are you?”
Comer’s still riding escalator up.
ML: “Hey — I think Luna talked to you. Did you hear these accusations? They're saying that group AARO — the UAP issue — that it was GOP leadership that kept the UAP Caucus from seeing SAPs.”
JC: “I don’t know. It’s not me.”
ML: “Yeah?”
SUBSCRIBER-ONLY CONTENT*
*Student? Lost your gig? Hard times?
No questions asked. Ping us privately.
JC: “Yeah. I want Luna to have whatever Luna wants.”
ML: “Yeah?”
JC: “But everybody’s interested in that stuff, you know.”
ML: “So you did give her a six month extension for Secrets?”
JC: “I'm gonna do whatever she wants, yeah.”
ML: “Oh, really?”
JC: “Yeah, yeah.”
ML: “That's pretty nice.”
A group is crowding onto their elevator.
JC: “I know. I try to please, Luna.”
Laslo laughs.
ML: “What…?”
JC: “Hard to please sometimes.”
ML: “What have you thought of the work of the Secrets…?”
JC: “Wait, what?”
ML: “What have you thought of the work of the Secrets Task Force?”
JC: “Well, it's difficult to get stuff. I told her that when we started. I said, ‘Listen, you're — you know, everybody said, ‘Oh, you need to demand this.’ You can demand it all day long, and you run into the deep state. The deep state doesn't want — and Trump's cabinet, people came in, released the JFK files, released the Epstein files. It's still gonna take some deep state bureaucrats to do it, you know?”
ML: “So you don't — why hasn't the administration been able to rustle some of that up if they’re pro transparency?”
JC: "They've got — you know, they battle hostility.”
They exit elevator on Capitol’s first floor.
JC: "They battle hostile employees.”
ML: “Yeah?”
JC: “And that's, you know, that's what — when you bring in outsiders, I don't think they really understand how hostile the deep state is. And, you know, you, first of all, you assume that the administration's left damning evidence behind.”
ML: “Yeah?”
JC: “There's no guarantee that the files weren't destroyed.”
ML: “Yeah? Interesting.”
JC: “So that's, I mean, it's tough, and I told Luna that. And she sees that, but she's a bulldog and she's trying to get it — you know, she's trying to get answers. I think she's the perfect person to do it. She's doing a good job. It’s just…”
ML: “Yeah?”
Comer’s aides are in hall greeting folks outside a reception.
ML: “Looks like you’re meeting in there.”
JC: “I gotta say hi.”
ML: “You got a day job, sir!”
Comer greets the visitors, while Laslo keeps trolling the marble halls…
Share this post