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Inspectors General Need to Be Taken Seriously
The Inspectors General are probably the most underappreciated and underrated people in the federal government.
The Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) was statutorily established as an independent entity within the executive branch. Since then it has been instrumental in identifying fraud, waste, mismanagement, and abuse, as well as developing policies to deal with those problems. As part of the office of the Inspectors General, the Office of Evaluations and Special Projects was created in 2014 to oversee the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012. This gives them the following mandate:
ESP is also responsible for reviewing allegations of administrative misconduct by senior officials, and issuing management alerts to highlight urgent need for corrective actions and capping reports on thematic areas of concern. Additionally, ESP is responsible for special evaluations and reviews, including responses to congressional inquiries. The work of this new office complements the work of OIG’s audits, investigations, and inspections by developing a capacity to focus on broader, systemic issues.
Two of the most high-profile investigations that have taken place in recent years include the discovery of 6,400 emails either to or from Lois Lerner of the IRS, and the recent discovery of thousands of text messages that “disappeared,” originally generated by Peter Strzok and Lisa Page. The tenacity and findings of the Inspectors General across departments are to be lauded; unfortunately, action on those findings has been sadly lacking.
The federal government prohibits political activity in the practicing of one’s duties:
4.1 Prohibition against political activity.
No person employed in the executive branch of the Federal Government, or any agency or department thereof, shall use his official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with an election or affecting the result thereof. No person occupying a position in the competitive service shall take any active part in political management or in political campaigns, except as may be provided by or pursuant to statute. All such persons shall retain the right to vote as they may choose and to express their opinions on all political subjects and candidates.
As a layperson looking at the Lois Lerner activities, as well as the more recent Strzok/Page situation, the following statements describe at least three violations:
Use official authority or influence to interfere with an election;
Solicit or discourage political activity of anyone with business before their agency;
Engage in political activity while on duty, in a government office, wearing an official uniform or using a government vehicle.
Since the evidence is clear that there has minimally been mismanagement and potentially extreme political bias in the execution of their duties, how can Congress ignore these actions? When will they condemn these activities and insist that they be held accountable? Why bother to have an Inspectors General Agency if there are not consequences for malfeasance?
It seems to me that we have the tools we need to prosecute individuals who blatantly defy federal law. Under President Obama, people chose to defy these restrictions and were essentially allowed to do so. Don’t you think it’s time for Trump, Sessions, and the DOJ to clean house?
Published in Politics
Yes I do, Susan. This is a terrific Post. I congratulate you. And I have to say this: You make one of points for me: Instead of satisfying himself with meaningless tweets, President Trump should be using the powers he already has. Since he is new to government, and probably doesn’t know about these laws and edifices, he should be asking if there anything that can be done to, as you put it, Clean House. This is why I say policy is not enough. Stop wasting time on satisfying your ego, Mr. President, and get to work!
Congress is too divided to address these actions and I’m not sure it is their baliwick. The White House is busy undoing the damage Obama did. But Sessions should have already been hard at work on these items. Letting scoff laws get away with this kind of thing just encourages future misdeeds. But I doubt we’ll see any action unless the Russia probe gets finished without charges being filed against anyone named Trump. That may be a major reason this investigation is being dragged out so long but if so it is only one of the reasons.
I agree. But what if the Russian probe goes on for years? Isn’t there a statute of limitations? Won’t Lois Lerner be beyond prosecution. Not only that, there is plenty of information that has been collected by the IG that should be relevant to the Russian probe. We just don’t hear about it. I’m sure I speak for both of us when I say that someone should be considering it.
Of course the text message loss was system-wide. If I were so inept as to make only the Stzrok/Page text messages disappear, I should be fired for incompetence.
When we see the arrogance of so many on the Left, thinking they can get away with almost anything, who knows what’s possible? Good point, though, @randywebster .
Why are Strozk and Page still on the payroll? Doesn’t an extra-marital affair qualify as blackmail bait for FBI people? Their dismissals should have been prompt and inevitable.
Almost no one in the federal government is ever held to be accountable for their actions. Accountability is for the peons. Even if they get fired, they’ll still probably collect their pensions.
Daniel Greenfield argues that we are in a civil war.
Angelo Codevilla’s essays America’s Ruling Class and the Perils of Revolution
and After the Republic are relevant. From the first:
From the latter:
There are Republican fingerprints all over this as well. The consequence:
Revolution. Civil War. Which side is the FBI’s top brass on?
Couldn’t agree more, Doctor. At the very least they should be fired without a pension. It will be interesting to see what happens if this darn Russian probe ever ends.
Love this quote, @ontheleftcoast. It’s pretty clear which side the FBI top brass are on. Unfortunately, I think we are already on the losing side. But it’s not over–do you see the possibility that things will shift? After all, revolutions are pretty unpredictable.
I would like to see the Offices of the Inspectors General taken seriously, but too often the individuals in those offices are subject to the same political pressures and questionable selection procedures (cronyism) as other federal employees. Another consistent issue is delays in filling vacant positions. This leads to the position being filled by those in “Acting” status for rather lengthy periods who may or may not be up to the job and who have an incentive to curry favor to get the full time appointment.
For certain definitions of shift, sure.
There’s a debt crisis hanging over our heads. There are reports that in 2017, for the first time in over 50 years, the debt:GCP ratio shrank. I don’t know if we can grow our way out of the debt bubble, but we sure as heck can’t do it without growth.
Many if not most state and local pension systems are basically a Ponzi scheme, and so is Social Security for that matter.
I’m 65. I won’t be surprised if the USA splits up in my lifetime.
That might be the least bad possibility. Imagine California if the Dems plans come to fruition, and imagine the whole country like that.
California, you ask?
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Governor Brown Vindicated!
Remember the Oroville, CA dam spill last winter? The cost of fixing it and cleaning it up is approaching $1 billion.
Trump promised help, of course, with an executive order that would ordinarily pave the way for the Federal government to pay most of the costs.
That was then:
But wait, there’s more: Governor Brown, by executive order, mandated that state agencies prioritize global warming planning over infrastructure repair.
And every new California drivers license issued to a person of voting age — U.S. citizen or not, in California legally or not, will come with voter registration at no extra charge.
You are correct, of course, @hoyacon. They may be subject to those pressures, but I’m not aware of anyone who has given in to the pressures. It has to be extraordinarily difficult not to, though.
There’s certainly a danger of painting with too broad a brush here, and I want to avoid that. So, some food for thought here, here, and here.
POGO may lean left, but I’ve found them reputable.
And, while a bit long in the tooth, the tale of Janet Rehnquist remains cautionary where appointments are concerned.
Wow, both impressive and discouraging. I especially liked this statement in the last POGO paragraphs:
Thus, some agency whistleblowers have been rightfully fearful and apprehensive about working with their IGs. This highlights why it’s so important for Congress to watch the watchdogs, facilitate interactions between IGs and agencies, and keep IGs accountable.
POGO has worked for years to improve the IG system and support legislation to make IGs both more independent and accountable. Both of these qualities are needed for IGs to be most effective. The PPS report and the discussions it is encouraging are helpful steps toward assisting the IGs, agencies, and Congress better “walk the line between improving agency programs and operations, and respecting each other’s needs and concerns.”
Thanks, Hoyacon. I wonder if we also need oversight for POGO! ;-)
“Today the Washington Post reports the DOJ IG has been focused on a period of three weeks in the fall of 2016. That’s when FBI agents in New York, who were looking into Anthony Weiner’s sexting habits, discovered his laptop held a batch of Hillary Clinton’s work-related emails. FBI headquarters was notified and, according to some, that’s when everything seemed to grind to a halt for several weeks on McCabe’s desk.”
The Inspector General at work . . .