Summary
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) criticized Donald Trump for illegally firing inspectors general without giving Congress 30 days’ notice.
Trump recently dismissed the USAID inspector general after a report exposed the administration’s mismanagement of foreign aid, putting $489 million in food assistance at risk.
Grassley, a longtime watchdog advocate, said Trump could still remove officials legally by placing them on administrative leave.
I’m largely inclined to agree, but his point stands that the Democrats are completely impotent in the current situation (at least legally). Whatever slim chance there is rests with Republican infighting.
I suppose if I try hard I can cling to a hope. He indirectly threatened their lives whole going out the door. A lot of the stakeholders likely genuinely thought he was going to go away without them having to alienate the Trump fanatics. So opting out of second impeachment they perceived as their best shot at retaining power.
Now Trump is quite directly doing everything to render the legislature powerless. Threaten their lives, that’s one thing, but to deny them the power they won, well maybe that’s a different thing…