Sen. Adam Schiff, a Democrat from California, accused President Donald Trump of breaching the law on Sunday after he fired 18 inspectors general late Friday night.
to dismiss this blatant legal transgression by stating, “Well, technically, he broke the law.” Schiff admitted to breaking the law in an interview with NBC News Meet the Press.
His remark came in response to Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who earlier in the show informed Meet the Press moderator Kristen Welker that, technically, Trump had broken the Inspector General Act, which Congress had amended to give inspectors general stronger safeguards against being fired without cause.
He wants to replace the staff, but I’m not losing a lot of sleep over it. “I just want to make sure he starts off well,” Graham continued.
Graham made a stronger defense of Trump in a subsequent CNN interview, stating, “Yes, I think he should have done that.”
He believes that the American people have not benefited much from the government. These watchdogs performed a really poor job. He’s looking for fresh perspectives on Washington. And I think that makes logical,” he continued.
Schiff, however, disputed that idea, stating that a swamp replenishment would occur if we did not have competent and impartial inspector generals.
He went on to say that the president might be trying to get rid of anyone who would draw attention to his wrongdoing.
In federal agencies, inspectors general are impartial individuals who conduct audits and investigations in response to claims of fraud, waste, or abuse.
Trump dismissed at least 18 inspectors general on Friday, including those from the Department of Labor, the State Department, the Defense Department, and the Health and Human Services Department.
Many senators from both parties noted on Saturday that Trump’s action seemed to go against the law, which mandates that when an inspector general is removed from office, presidents must provide Congress with a 30-day notice period and a detailed justification for the dismissal.
In a statement released on Saturday, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, told NBC News that he would need more information from President Trump regarding his rationale for the dismissals.
The IGs may have been sacked for a valid reason. If that’s the case, we must know. I would like President Trump to provide further details. In any case, Congress was not given the 30-day comprehensive notice of removal required by law, according to Grassley.
Additionally, in an address on the Senate floor Saturday morning, Senate minority leader Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., criticized Trump’s decision.
President Trump dismissed at least 12 independent inspector generals from key federal agencies around the administration in the middle of the night yesterday. “This purge is chilling,” Schumer remarked.
He went on to say that these terminations might be against federal law, which mandates that Congress provide inspectors general 30 days’ notice before firing them.
A White House insider told NBC News on Saturday that legal counsel reviews many of the dismissal decisions. Although they didn’t believe the administration had breached any laws, they did add that they were consulting with the White House counsel’s office.
Although it’s unclear how Congress will respond to this alleged legal transgression, Schiff stated on Sunday that “we have the power of the purse.” We already have the authority to approve or disapprove candidates for Cabinet posts that oversee agencies or would oversee agencies with recently dismissed inspector generals.
With the complete support of the Senate GOP caucus, which now holds a 53-47 majority in the Senate, all but one of Trump’s Cabinet nominations have passed the Senate thus far. Vice President JD Vance broke the tie and gave new Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth a majority, although he lost three GOP votes in his final confirmation vote.