The Trump administration has fired the Inspector General at the Department of Transportation, along with inspectors general at several other agencies, including the departments of state and defense, leaving each without an independent watchdog.
According to The Guardian, all were notified by emails from the White House personnel director on January 24 that they had been terminated immediately, the source said on condition of anonymity.
The dismissals appeared to violate federal law, which requires the president to give both houses of Congress reasons for the dismissals 30 days in advance.
An inspector general is an independent position that conducts audits and investigations into allegations of waste, fraud and abuse of power.
On January 26, U.S. Senator Adam Schiff said the firings were in “clear violation of law.” “And not just any law,” said Schiff on NBC’s Meet the Press, “but a law meant to crowd out waste, fraud and abuse.”
A call during office hours January 27 to the Office of the Inspector General at the DoT went straight to voicemail. In response to an email sent to the DoT press office, requesting comment from Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, and asking if and when a new Inspector General will be appointed, the DoT referred SupplyChainBrain to the White House.
The White House website, however, does not provide media contact information. Queries to the Office of Donald J. Trump have so far gone unanswered.
