June 3, 2020 – 9:00 Pacific / 12:00 Eastern / 18:00 CET
Register here
Join GW Law for another free hourlong webinar, on President Donald Trump’s abrupt removal of four inspectors general and his announcement that a fifth will be dismissed shortly. In the last few months Trump has:
- Fired Michael Atkinson, inspector general for the U.S. intelligence community, who passed forward to Congress the whistleblower complaint regarding Ukraine that helped lead to Trump’s impeachment by the House of Representatives.
- Removed Glenn Fine, acting inspector general of the Department of Defense, who was slated to chair the federal panel Congress created to oversee the Trump administration’s management of the $2 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package.
- Ousted Christi Grimm as head of the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), after she published a report critical of the Trump administration’s preparations for the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Notified Congress on Friday, May 15, 2020 that Steve Linick, Inspector General of the State Department, will be fired effective June 15, 2020 (after the statutory 30-day notice period), after Linick reportedly launched an inquiry into Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, according to a statement issued by the chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Rep. Eliot Engel.
- On the same day, removed Mitch Behm, the acting Inspector General at the Department of Transportation, nominated Justice Department attorney Eric Soskin to be the permanent Inspector General, and designated Howard “Skip” Elliott as the Department’s Acting Inspector General. House Democrats had earlier requested an investigation into alleged favoritism shown by DOT in its dealings with the husband of Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who is seeking reelection. When acting inspector general Mitch Behm was replaced, Democrats voiced concern that his removal was prompted by the requested investigation involving Secretary Chao.
In-Depth Assessment: Background for the Webinar
An expert panel will discuss these actions against the inspectors general, which many have criticized as a collapse of the rule of law in Washington, opening the door to corruption in this and future administrations.
The panel will be moderated by Christopher Yukins, who teaches on anti-corruption in the Government Procurement Program at The George Washington University Law School, joined by:
- Lisa Rein of the Washington Post will discuss President Trump’s recent actions against inspectors general across the federal government.
- Jessica Tillipman teaches anti-corruption and government ethics law at The George Washington University Law School. She will discuss the role of inspectors general in the U.S. government under the Inspector General Act of 1978, and the balance that the Act draws between the power of the President and the independence of the inspectors general.
- Clark Ervin, a partner at the law firm of Squire Patton Boggs who served as inspector general at three federal agencies during the administration of President George W. Bush, will discuss the role and independence of inspectors general historically, from the perspective of a former inspector general.
- Noah Bookbinder is Executive Director of the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), and previously served as an attorney in the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section. He will discuss the pattern of Trump administration moves against inspectors general, the implications for potential corruption, and possible pathways to reform.
