Chaffetz: Panel is done with Benghazi but not security

Corrections and clarifications: A prior version of this story misspelled the name of Rep. Darrell Issa.

The lead investigative committee in the House has given up its jurisdiction over the attacks in September 2012 in Benghazi, Libya, but the incoming chairman of the committee says he is not done with the issues surrounding the attack.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, said Tuesday that the committee will dig into concerns about embassy security, an area in which he says it's clear Hillary Rodham Clinton made missteps as secretary of State.

"I'm not doing anything with Benghazi," Chaffetz said, "but ongoing concerns about embassy security, design and build is a huge, huge issue. It was working well with Colin Powell, and Hillary Clinton changed it, and it's a disaster. It's a major threat to those people that serve overseas.

"There is some really bad stuff that's been happening there," he said. "We are not to the finish line on that, but they have been so adamant in hiding the information."

Congress may have some responsibility for security issues. Shortly after the Benghazi attack, Chaffetz acknowledged on CNN that the Republican House had cut funding the State Department wanted for embassy security. His concern is more about the pace of construction and upgrades.

House Republicans created a special committee in May to run the investigation of the Benghazi attack, chaired by Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C. Chaffetz said he and Gowdy have a good relationship and will coordinate their efforts.

The oversight panel will stick with several topics that have been regular fodder for Republican complaints about the administration: the IRS' treatment of Tea Party-affiliated groups and the Affordable Care Act.

"The IRS and Obamacare are going to get a major portion of our attention," Chaffetz said. "The administration has not come clean on those, and there continues to be a lot of smoke, and we are going to continue to pursue it."

He plans to seek more information from Jonathan Gruber, the economist paid by the White House to help develop the legislation. Gruber remarked on camera that a "lack of transparency" and "the stupidity of the American voter" were key to getting the law passed in 2010.

"He's in my top 10 — he's an all-star!" Chaffetz said.

Chaffetz plans a major new area of focus on rules issued by federal agencies.

"This is the way the president says he is going to govern in the last two years," Chaffetz said. "He has shown no interest in the legislative process, but he has shown keen interest in administrative rules. That's the way he is going to govern. So we are going to have dedicated staff that every day is going to wake up and understand what the administration is trying to do with rules."

He said he has a different style than outgoing chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and he does not believe the committee's investigations need to become so personal.

"There are several times when things got too personal, and I thought it was wrong. Chairman Issa said as much," Chaffetz said. He said he learned a lot from Issa and is grateful for his guidance, but "I am a different person, and I have a different approach." Issa, who under GOP rules was term-limited from serving another two years as chairman, will not be a member of the committee starting in January.