WASHINGTON -- National Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis did not assuage Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and other GOP members during this week's congressional hearings on how federal authorities have handled the Occupy DC encampment in McPherson Square.
But Jarvis has at least one new fan in Congress coming out of his testimony from Tuesday's House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on Occupy DC.
Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.) sent Jarvis a letter complimenting the NPS director for his comments during the hearing:
The hearing "McPherson Square: Who Made the Decision to Allow Indefinite Camping in the Park?" had a decidedly partisan tone and you weathered the barned questions and harangues admirably.
I also commend you and the officers of the U.S. Park Police for their highly professional conduct protecting the public and the rights of protesters in their ongoing Occupy manifestation in McPherson Square, Freedom Plaza and in other areas under your jurisdiction. Our nation's capital should stand out as a focal point for what our Founding Fathers intended by the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights.
I am grateful for your service and the dedicated men and women of the National Park Service who remain committed to defend and exemplify our most cherished of liberties.
Moran scored 100 percent on the ACLU's 112th congressional scorecard for his support of civil liberties. Were Occupy to issue a scorecard, they'd likely give him high marks as well. In late May -- over four months before the tent city in McPherson Square took root -- he helped rally against the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, where he spoke out against corporations' undue political influence in electoral politics.
At the rally Moran also suggested -- wrongly, as it turned out -- that the Koch brothers were implicated in congressional cafeterias doing away with biodegradable cups, plates and silverware.
RELATED VIDEO: Jim Moran speaking at the May rally against Citizens United.