WASHINGTON — A list of talking points from Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Renacci's office offer a glimpse into how the office chose to spin the decision to delete the congressman's tweet about Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, the freed prisoner of war who was exchanged for five Taliban prisoners.
The talking points, which were sent to BuzzFeed on Monday apparently by accident from an intern in Renacci's office, show the line seemingly used for constituents who might call and ask about a tweet from Renacci about Bergdahl that was deleted.
If you receive any calls regarding the deleted post regarding Bergdahl, here are our talking points:
* Over the past several days, new information has been brought to light regarding Sgt. Bergdahl's capture and release and the facts are currently unclear.
* Given these developments, which the administration did not share with Congress, it was appropriate to take the post down.
* We entrust the Army to follow through with outstanding concerns regarding the nature of his disappearance and we fully support the House Armed Services' Committee's hearings into the prisoner swap.
* We expect the administration to fully cooperate and provide answers to the American people's questions.
* We will continue to closely monitor these developments.
* Happy to pass along your concern to the Congressman.
Renacci was one of a group of politicians who tweeted supportive messages about Bergdahl's rescue, before his trade for five Taliban members became a hot-button issue in D.C. politics and the tweets were deleted.
"So glad to hear that Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is coming home safely," Renacci tweeted. "He's a true American hero."
The tweet was deleted three days after Renacci tweeted it.
The rest of the email sent to BuzzFeed includes other talking points about unemployment compensation, immigration, gun rights, and more:
Subject: Updated TPs for EUC
Same as before, chances are the person on the phone will have a differing point of view from the person on the phone. Feel free to input their opinions or request on Jim's position into IQ for an email or letter response-now that we have a letter approved it shouldn't be too long before they receive a response. Let me know if you have any questions.
* Mr. Renacci believes unemployment benefits are supposed to help the unemployed find work.
* Currently, there are no efforts underway in the House to extend the EUC program.
* While the Senate bill extends the EUC program for 5 months through May, 2014 (because it includes retroactive payments) the bill is unworkable and would cause considerable delays in the implementation of the program and increase administrative issues and costs.
* Some states have already indicated that if passed, they would consider not operating the program due to considerable administrative burdens.
* EUC was always meant to be a temporary program-it will have operated for twice as long and paid twice as many weeks of Federal unemployment benefits as any prior temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation program.
* The number of people collecting EUC has fallen back to 2008 levels, which is when the program began, suggesting it is time for the program to end.
* He believes our focus should be on strengthening the underlying UI program, which has serious administrative issues, and removing red tape to help states get people back to work sooner.
o Including paying billions of dollars incorrectly to prisoners, people who are working, and even people who have died.
* For this reason, Mr. Renacci has introduced legislation that will make it easier for states to invest Federal UI funds in evidence-based programs that connect more Americans to jobs.
* The House will continue to consider and pass pro-growth job bills that focus on job creation and decreasing government red tape.
_______________________________
If you receive any calls regarding the deleted post regarding Bergdahl, here are our talking points:
* Over the past several days, new information has been brought to light regarding Sgt. Bergdahl's capture and release and the facts are currently unclear.
* Given these developments, which the administration did not share with Congress, it was appropriate to take the post down.
* We entrust the Army to follow through with outstanding concerns regarding the nature of his disappearance and we fully support the House Armed Services' Committee's hearings into the prisoner swap.
* We expect the administration to fully cooperate and provide answers to the American people's questions.
* We will continue to closely monitor these developments.
* Happy to pass along your concern to the Congressman.
__________________________
Subject: thompson-king amdt tps
* The Congressman is a life member of the NRA
* He strongly supports the Second Amendment
* He believes that the Bill of Rights was created to protect and preserve an individuals' right to bear arms and will always defend that Constitutional right
* Nearly half the states still do not regularly provide records to the federal database to keep guns out of the hands of people with histories of mental illness or a criminal background
* States are not required to report to the database
* Jim voted in favor of the Thompson-King Amendment to increase funding for state grants designed to prevent dangerous people from buying and owning firearms
* It is already illegal for these individuals to own firearms
________________________________
Immigration
* Jim recognizes our immigration system is broken.
* He believes that we must secure our borders first, we cannot put those who have come here illegally before those who have lawfully gone through the process, and we should not reward illegal behavior.
* He wants to see our current immigration laws enforced, our borders secured, and mandatory use of E-Verify.
* I am happy to pass on your thoughts and concerns.
A spokesperson for Renacci did not immediately return a request for comment.