McClatchy: Trump hasn’t filled top watchdog jobs at Pentagon, CIA, other agencies

McClatchy: Trump hasn’t filled top watchdog jobs at Pentagon, CIA, other agencies

“A whistleblower by nature is caught up in controversy. The inspector general makes sure he’s protected,” Beth Rotman, director of money in politics & ethics at Common Cause, said. Rotman and others cite instances where IGs have uncovered widespread abuse.“The stunning alleged misconduct of the president urging election interference by a foreign power was almost covered up until the IG stepped in,” said Rotman. “Who knows what other threats to our democracy are out there right now?”

Nine of the government’s top watchdog jobs — the independent officials charged with handling whistleblower complaints and keeping an eye on unusual agency activity — have not been filled by President Donald Trump.

Trump is supposed to nominate candidates to fill the top inspector general job at the Pentagon, Central Intelligence Agency, Environmental Protection Agency and departments of Health and Human Services, Treasury and Education, according to a congressional committee letter to the White House.

Those positions – which also include permanent IGs at the Office of Personnel Management, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission — need Senate confirmation. …

The role of the inspector general erupted into the public spotlight this week.

It was a whistleblower’s complaint about Trump’s phone call with Ukraine’s president about investigating former Vice President Joe Biden’s son Hunter that triggered the House impeachment inquiry.

The whistleblower sent the complaint to Michael Atkinson, the Intelligence Community’s inspector general, who then sent it on to Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire. Democrats contended Maguire should have informed congressional intelligence committees about the complaint.

Under questioning from Rep. Elise Stefanik, a New York Republican, Maguire told the House Intelligence Committee on Thursday that Atkinson conducted “a thorough investigation” within the 14-day timeframe he had to investigate the complaint.

“And under that timeline, to the best of his ability, made the determination that it was both credible and urgent. I have no reason to doubt that Michael Atkinson did anything but his job,” Maguire said.

But the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel found the complaint did not involve a matter of “urgent concern” and that Maguire did not have to report the complaint.

To Washington government reform groups, the incident appears to confirm the value of an independent inspector general who can encourage an atmosphere where employees feel protected and comfortable if they become whistleblowers.

“A whistleblower by nature is caught up in controversy. The inspector general makes sure he’s protected,” Beth Rotman, director of money in politics & ethics at Common Cause, said. …

Rotman and others cite instances where IGs have uncovered widespread abuse.

Among the most controversial in recent years was the $800,000 spent by the General Services Administration on a lavish 2010 “Western Regions Conference” in Las Vegas.

And then there’s the current controversy. “The stunning alleged misconduct of the president urging election interference by a foreign power was almost covered up until the IG stepped in,” said Rotman. “Who knows what other threats to our democracy are out there right now?”