Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) said Saturday she didn’t understand why President Trump fired several departmental inspectors general late Friday night given that those positions are crucial to rooting out waste, fraud and abuse in the federal government, one of the president’s stated goals.
“I don’t understand why one would fire individuals whose mission it is to root out waste, fraud and abuse. This leaves a gap in what I know is a priority for President Trump. So I don’t understand it,” Collins said while arriving at the Capitol for a Saturday morning vote.
Trump fired 17 government watchdogs at the Departments of Defense, State, Transportation, Veterans Affairs, Energy, Interior, Housing and Urban Development and other agencies, catching GOP lawmakers by surprise.
“Somebody just mentioned to me downstairs as I was coming in, just heard about it,” said Senate Republican Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.).
Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) said he was aware of the move but needs to study it more carefully.
“I heard it, I have not looked at it and I don’t know what it all entails. Honestly, I would just be guessing at this point about what that actually entails. I’ll wait and find out what that means in terms of other people stepping in,” he said.
The surprise move drew strong criticism from Democrats.
“It’s part of his plan to undermine the functioning of the government of the United States so that there’s is no objective person that can make judgments about propriety of his actions,” Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the ranking member of the Armed Services Committee said of Trump’s action.
“Now he has a much freer pathway to avoid rules, regulations to essentially change the system from one of laws to one of his whims,” he added.
Reed said the Defense Department’s inspector general was responsive to lawmakers’ requests.
“I would give the IG a good grade. They’re very thorough. They have to be that way. When they rendered a report it was factual, accurate and untainted by political bias or any other bias,” he said.
