Rep. Trey Gowdy joins intelligence committee

Mary Orndorff Troyan | The Greenville News

WASHINGTON – Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-Spartanburg, was named to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Friday, the first South Carolina member of Congress to be on the panel.

“Protecting the safety and security of our fellow citizens is the preeminent function of government. When it comes to our national security, we cannot afford to take risks,” Gowdy said in a prepared statement. “The House Intelligence Committee plays a vital role in protecting Americans both at home and abroad through conducting thorough oversight of our nation’s intelligence agencies.”

Gowdy was appointed to the panel by House Republican leaders. He will continue to serve on three other committees: ethics, oversight and government reform and judiciary.

Gowdy was formerly chair of the Select Committee on Benghazi, which disbanded at the end of 2016 after issuing its final report on the 2012 terrorist attacks in Libya.

Like the Benghazi panel, much of the work of the intelligence committee is done behind closed doors dealing with classified information and the intelligence gathering operations of 17 different government agencies.

The intelligence committee was one of several to conduct investigations into Benghazi and the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Created in 1977, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence has never had a member from South Carolina, according to the Congressional Research Service.