President Donald Trump's administration fired the independent inspector generals of more than a dozen major government agencies late Friday, according to reports.
Those agencies include the Departments of Defense, State, Transportation, Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development, Interior and Energy, The Washington Post reported, citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter. That's what it means.
The New York Times reported that the purge affected 17 government agencies, but that Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz was spared.
The Washington Post reported that the firing “appears to violate a federal law that requires inspector generals to give Congress 30 days' notice of their intent to remove them.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.
The Inspector General is an independent position that audits, investigates, and inspects allegations of waste, fraud, and abuse. They can be removed by the president or the head of the agency, depending on who nominated or appointed them.
The Washington Post reported that most of those fired were appointees during President Trump's first term from 2017 to 2021, and those affected were notified in an email from the White House personnel director. He said he was informed that he had been fired with immediate effect.
