Issa questions why Occupy DC allowed to camp at McPherson Square

By: Aubrey Whelan
Park Police walk through the Occupy DC camp in McPherson Square on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011.

The chairman of the congressional committee that oversees the District's affairs is demanding to know whether the Obama administration is allowing Occupy DC to camp illegally in McPherson Square for political purposes.

House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., is asking Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to turn over documents and communications between the White House and the National Park Service, which is in charge of McPherson Square park, among other things.

The protesters' camp has already caused serious damage to McPherson Square on which $400,000 of economic stimulus money was recently spent for new sod and other improvements, Issa said.

Occupy DC has been camped in McPherson Square without a permit for two months even though camping in the park is illegal. Park Police said they consider the encampment a "24-hour vigil."

Issa gave Salazar until Jan. 3 to produce the documents and communications pertaining to the protest.

"This situation raises questions about why those decisions were made, who participated in making them and whether political judgments played a role in not enforcing the law," Issa wrote.