Chuck Grassley Wants Answers From Trump After Friday Night Inspectors General Purge: ‘I’d Like Further Explanation’
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) demanded an answer Saturday after President Donald Trump fired more than a dozen inspectors general a night earlier without informing Congress.
On Friday evening, the Trump administration axed approximately 17 inspectors from the State, Defense, Transportation, and other departments. Each department has an inspector general whose job is to root out corruption, abuse of power, and fraud.
The Washington Post described the mass firings as a “purge.”
Democrats on Capitol Hill, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), quickly condemned Trump over the firings. Schumer said the mass terminations were done in the “dark of night” and portrayed them as a “chilling” sign of things to come over the next four years.
The criticism from lawmakers became bipartisan on Saturday when a number of Republicans weighed in. Grassley, a Trump ally, said Congress was not offered advanced warning about the firings as is required by law.
He demanded answers from Trump specifically.
“There may be good reason the IGs were fired,” Grassley said Saturday in a statement obtained by CNN. “We need to know that if so. I’d like further explanation from President Trump. Regardless, the 30 day detailed notice of removal that the law demands was not provided to Congress.”
Sen. Lisa Murkowski R-AK) also weighed in on the “unprecedented” action taken by the White House.
“What I do understand is that it is relatively unprecedented in that there was no notice,” Murkowski said. “I can understand why a new president coming in would want to look critically at the IGs and the role that they have played within the various agencies, but … the summary dismissal of everybody, I think, has raised concerns.”
Federal law requires that the White House notify Congress within the month before an inspector is removed from their position.
According to CBS News, many of those who lost their jobs were appointed during Trump’s first term.
The White House had not commented on the matter as of Saturday night.
Watch the clip above via CNN.
