Donald Trump fires 17 inspectors general across US government agencies

UPDATED: Jan 25, 2025 23:42 IST

President Donald Trump has fired 17 independent watchdogs at multiple US government agencies. These fired people were from various agencies within the Defense Department, State Department, Energy Department, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and others.

The dismissals began Friday night and were effective immediately, according to two people familiar with the actions. They spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details that have not been made public.

However, those within the Pentagon, State Department and Transportation Department were notified of the termination over email, according to the Washington Post.

Congress was not given 30-day notices about the removals –- something that even a top Republican is decrying.

“There may be good reason the IGs were fired. We need to know that if so,” Sen. Chuck Grassley, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said in a statement. “I’d like further explanation from President Trump. Regardless, the 30 day detailed notice of removal that the law demands was not provided to Congress,” said Grassley, R-Iowa.

“Yesterday, in the dark of night, President Trump fired at least 12 independent inspector generals at important federal agencies across the administration,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York said Saturday on the chamber’s floor. “This is a chilling purge and it’s a preview of the lawless approach Donald Trump and his administration are taking far too often as he’s becoming president.”

Schumer said the dismissals are “possibly in violation of federal law” and help demonstrate that the move “is a glaring sign that it’s a golden age for abuse in government and even corruption.”

The Washington Post, which first reported the firings, said that many were appointees from Trump’s first term.

In December 2019, for instance, Horowitz released a report faulting the FBI for surveillance warrant applications in the investigation into ties between Russia and Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. But the report also found that that investigation had been opened for a legitimate purpose and did not find evidence that partisan bias had guided investigative decisions.

In 2020, Trump replaced multiple key inspectors general, including those leading the Defense Department and the intelligence community, as well as the inspector general tapped to chair a special oversight board for the $2.2 trillion economic relief package on the coronavirus.

(With input from AP)