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2020 dismissals of inspectors general
In April and May 2020, United States president Donald Trump dismissed the inspectors general (IGs) of five cabinet departments in the space of six weeks. The inspectors general removed were Michael K. Atkinson, Intelligence, on April 3; Glenn Fine (acting), Defense, April 7; Christi Grimm (acting), Health and Human Services, May 1; Mitch Behm (acting), Transportation, May 15; and Steve Linick, State, May 15. In four of the cases the announcement was made late on a Friday night in a classic Friday news dump.[citation needed] In several cases the fired IGs had taken an action which Trump disliked, so that the dismissals were widely described as retaliation. In two other cases, questions were raised about whether the dismissals related to ongoing IG investigations into the conduct of the cabinet secretary in charge of that department. The cumulative firings were often described as a "purge" or as a "war on watchdogs".
Inspectors general are oversight officials assigned to various agencies within the executive branch of the US federal government, such as cabinet departments. Established by the Inspector General Act of 1978, the offices of inspectors general are responsible for identifying, auditing, and investigating fraud, waste, abuse, embezzlement and mismanagement of any kind within executive departments and agencies. IG investigations may come about through any of several sources: complaints from within the department, often anonymous and often through a "whistleblower" system or hotline for such reports; requests for an investigation from a Congress member or Congressional committee; and the IG's own initiative.
IGs are appointed by the president and are supposed to be confirmed by the Senate, although many current IGs are in an acting capacity and have not been confirmed by the Senate. The president may dismiss an inspector general, but is required to give Congress 30 days' notice and an explanation of the reason for removing them. The 30 days' notice requirement was added to the 1978 law in 2008; its purpose was to re-emphasize the role of the IG as an independent watchdog and to dissuade presidents from retaliatory firings.
In 1981, Ronald Reagan fired 16 inspectors general when he became president, with his administration explaining that Reagan intended to hire his own people. After Congress objected, Reagan rehired five of the fired inspectors general. In 1989, George H. W. Bush requested the resignations of all the inspectors general upon assuming the presidency. The inspectors general, along with Congress, raised objections, and Bush rescinded the requests. In 2009, President Barack Obama dismissed Corporation for National and Community Service inspector general Gerald Walpin citing a lack of confidence in him. After Congress objected to the lack of explanation, the Obama administration cited that Walpin had shown "troubling and inappropriate conduct", and pointed to an incident that year where Walpin was "disoriented" during a board meeting of the corporation, which led to the board asking for Walpin's dismissal. Walpin sued for a reinstatement, but the courts ruled against Walpin.
Most of the Trump administration's announcements were made late on Friday nights, a very low-profile time, so that the dismissals have been referred to as a "Friday night massacre", a reference to Richard Nixon's Saturday Night Massacre firing of Watergate special prosecutor Archibald Cox.
On Friday night, January 24, 2025, just days into his second term, the Trump team notified at least a dozen inspectors general that they were terminated effective immediately. The action was seen by various parties as violating the updated 2022 IG law, with legal challenges likely.
On Friday night, April 7, at 10 p.m., Trump sent a letter to Congress saying he intended to dismiss Michael K. Atkinson, the Inspector General of the Intelligence Community, giving as a reason only that he had "lost confidence" in the IG. Trump has described Atkinson as disloyal for his role in forwarding the whistleblower complaint which led to Trump's first impeachment. The dismissal followed a pattern of retaliation against others Trump blamed for aiding the impeachment, including Gordon Sondland and Alexander Vindman. In theory the dismissal becomes effective 30 days after Congress is notified, but Trump placed Atkinson on administrative leave for the 30 days so that in effect the dismissal was immediate.
When Trump was asked about the firing the next day, he criticized Atkinson as having done a "terrible job": "took a fake report and he brought it to Congress", in reference to the whistleblower complaint of the Trump–Ukraine scandal, which was actually largely verified by other testimony and evidence. Trump further complained that Atkinson "never even came in to see me. How can you [forward the complaint] without seeing the person?" Trump concluded that Atkinson was "not a big Trump fan".
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2020 dismissals of inspectors general
In April and May 2020, United States president Donald Trump dismissed the inspectors general (IGs) of five cabinet departments in the space of six weeks. The inspectors general removed were Michael K. Atkinson, Intelligence, on April 3; Glenn Fine (acting), Defense, April 7; Christi Grimm (acting), Health and Human Services, May 1; Mitch Behm (acting), Transportation, May 15; and Steve Linick, State, May 15. In four of the cases the announcement was made late on a Friday night in a classic Friday news dump.[citation needed] In several cases the fired IGs had taken an action which Trump disliked, so that the dismissals were widely described as retaliation. In two other cases, questions were raised about whether the dismissals related to ongoing IG investigations into the conduct of the cabinet secretary in charge of that department. The cumulative firings were often described as a "purge" or as a "war on watchdogs".
Inspectors general are oversight officials assigned to various agencies within the executive branch of the US federal government, such as cabinet departments. Established by the Inspector General Act of 1978, the offices of inspectors general are responsible for identifying, auditing, and investigating fraud, waste, abuse, embezzlement and mismanagement of any kind within executive departments and agencies. IG investigations may come about through any of several sources: complaints from within the department, often anonymous and often through a "whistleblower" system or hotline for such reports; requests for an investigation from a Congress member or Congressional committee; and the IG's own initiative.
IGs are appointed by the president and are supposed to be confirmed by the Senate, although many current IGs are in an acting capacity and have not been confirmed by the Senate. The president may dismiss an inspector general, but is required to give Congress 30 days' notice and an explanation of the reason for removing them. The 30 days' notice requirement was added to the 1978 law in 2008; its purpose was to re-emphasize the role of the IG as an independent watchdog and to dissuade presidents from retaliatory firings.
In 1981, Ronald Reagan fired 16 inspectors general when he became president, with his administration explaining that Reagan intended to hire his own people. After Congress objected, Reagan rehired five of the fired inspectors general. In 1989, George H. W. Bush requested the resignations of all the inspectors general upon assuming the presidency. The inspectors general, along with Congress, raised objections, and Bush rescinded the requests. In 2009, President Barack Obama dismissed Corporation for National and Community Service inspector general Gerald Walpin citing a lack of confidence in him. After Congress objected to the lack of explanation, the Obama administration cited that Walpin had shown "troubling and inappropriate conduct", and pointed to an incident that year where Walpin was "disoriented" during a board meeting of the corporation, which led to the board asking for Walpin's dismissal. Walpin sued for a reinstatement, but the courts ruled against Walpin.
Most of the Trump administration's announcements were made late on Friday nights, a very low-profile time, so that the dismissals have been referred to as a "Friday night massacre", a reference to Richard Nixon's Saturday Night Massacre firing of Watergate special prosecutor Archibald Cox.
On Friday night, January 24, 2025, just days into his second term, the Trump team notified at least a dozen inspectors general that they were terminated effective immediately. The action was seen by various parties as violating the updated 2022 IG law, with legal challenges likely.
On Friday night, April 7, at 10 p.m., Trump sent a letter to Congress saying he intended to dismiss Michael K. Atkinson, the Inspector General of the Intelligence Community, giving as a reason only that he had "lost confidence" in the IG. Trump has described Atkinson as disloyal for his role in forwarding the whistleblower complaint which led to Trump's first impeachment. The dismissal followed a pattern of retaliation against others Trump blamed for aiding the impeachment, including Gordon Sondland and Alexander Vindman. In theory the dismissal becomes effective 30 days after Congress is notified, but Trump placed Atkinson on administrative leave for the 30 days so that in effect the dismissal was immediate.
When Trump was asked about the firing the next day, he criticized Atkinson as having done a "terrible job": "took a fake report and he brought it to Congress", in reference to the whistleblower complaint of the Trump–Ukraine scandal, which was actually largely verified by other testimony and evidence. Trump further complained that Atkinson "never even came in to see me. How can you [forward the complaint] without seeing the person?" Trump concluded that Atkinson was "not a big Trump fan".