Under
the Obama Administration, inspector generals have been attacked, evaded,
threatened, and stripped of the information and authority they need to do their
jobs. When inspector generals are robbed of their power, the word
"accountability" loses significance. President Obama fears federal
watchdogs because they have real power over him and his
cronies. Meanwhile, federal inspector generals from more than 10 agencies
are pleading with lawmakers to give them access to public records, which, under
the 1978 Inspector General Act, they should be privy to.
Again
and again, the Obama Administration has downplayed and covered up key
investigations into government corruption. Last year, over half of all federal
IGs signed a public letter lamenting the Administration’s blocking of their
investigations. According to the letter, the White House has placed
“serious limitations on access to records that have recently impeded the work”
of IGs in the EPA, Peace Corps, and Department of Justice. This stonewalling
has endangered their “ability to conduct our work thoroughly, independently,
and in a timely manner.”
Do
I need to remind you of Gerald Walpin, an AmeriCorps IG who was fired after
exposing sexual misconduct and financial corruption by Obama’s pal and mayor of
Sacramento Kevin Johnson?
Or
Fred Weiderhold Jr., IG for Amtrak, who was forced to retire early after
discussing the results of an independent report which concluded that the
effectiveness and independence of the Amtrak IG’s office is being
“substantially impaired” by the agency’s Law Department.
Inspector
generals are the public’s best guardians when it comes to the use of their
hard-earned tax dollars. And thanks to Obama, they don’t have access to what
they need.
Department
of Justice IG Michael Horowitz testified earlier this year, exposing the
Administration’s “continued refusal by the Department to recognize that Section
6(a) of the Inspector General Act authorizes the DOJ OIG to obtain access to
all records in the Department’s possession that we need in order to perform our
oversight responsibilities.”
For
example, not only has the FBI repeatedly failed to produce requested documents,
the agency has also severely limited records disclosures. In order to gain
access to fair credit, grand jury, and wiretap information, IGs must now (as of
July) ask permission from the head of the agency they are investigating.
According
to Horowitz, there is still hope in the form of pending “legislation in the
Senate, S. 579, and the House, H.R. 2395, [that] would restore IG independence
and empower IGs to conduct the kind of rigorous, independent and thorough
oversight that taxpayers expect.”
http://punchingbagpost.com/obama-sabotages-federal-watchdogs
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