Obama fires the IG

What's behind Obama's sudden attempt to fire the AmeriCorps inspector general?

Some strange and potentially suspicious events tonight concerning the Obama White House and the AmeriCorps program. I've been told that on Wednesday night the AmeriCorps inspector general, Gerald Walpin, received a call from the White House counsel's office telling him that he had one hour to either resign or be fired. The White House did not cite a reason. "The answer that was given was that it's just time to move on," one Senate source told me tonight. "The president would like to have someone else in that position."

Inspectors General are part of every federal department. They are given the responsibility of independently investigating allegations of waste, fraud, and corruption in the government, without fear of interference by political appointees or the White House.
Last year Congress passed the Inspectors General Reform Act, which added new protections for IGs, including a measure requiring the president to give Congress 30 days prior notice before dismissing an IG. The president must also give Congress an explanation of why the action is needed. Then-Sen. Barack Obama was one of the co-sponsors of the Act.

Is Obama having second thoughts about an Independent IG?

"I was troubled to learn that last night your staff reportedly issued an ultimatum to the AmeriCorps Inspector General Gerald Walpin that he had one hour to resign or be terminated," Grassley wrote. "As you know, Inspectors General were created by Congress as a means to combat waste, fraud, and abuse and to be independent watchdogs ensuring that federal agencies were held accountable for their actions. Inspectors General were designed to have a dual role reporting to both the President and Congress so that they would be free from undue political pressure. This independence is the hallmark of all Inspectors General and is essential so they may operate independently, without political pressure or interference from agencies attempting to keep their failings from public scrutiny."

One must play ball the Obama way.....

UPDATE 1: I've been trying to discover the real reason for Obama's move, and it's still not clear. I'm told that it could be a combination of the normal tensions that surround any inspector general's office, or the president's desire to get his own people in IG positions, or a dispute over a particular investigation. "Bottom line," one source wrote, "getting rid of a tough, Republican-appointed IG who has been aggressively going after waste and fraud gives Obama a chance to replace that IG with a more compliant team player."

I'm also told that a number of inspectors general around the government have been expressing concerns to Congress recently about threats to their independence.

independence ????? not anymore....

UPDATE 2: More information now, from the Associated Press. The White House is going ahead with firing Walpin. The firing apparently stems from Walpin's investigation of a non-profit group, St. HOPE Academy, run by Kevin Johnson, the former NBA star who is now mayor of Sacramento, California (and a big Obama supporter). "[Walpin] found that Johnson, a former all-star point guard for the Phoenix Suns, had used AmeriCorps grants to pay volunteers to engage in school-board political activities, run personal errands for Johnson and even wash his car," the AP reports.
In April, the U.S. attorney declined to file any criminal charges in the matter and criticized Walpin's investigation. But at the same time Johnson and St. HOPE agreed to repay about half of the $850,000 it had received from AmeriCorps.

Bottom line: The AmeriCorps IG accuses prominent Obama supporter of misusing AmeriCorps grant money.
Prominent Obama supporter has to pay back more than $400,000 of that grant money.
Obama fires AmeriCorps IG.

I wonder if Obama is going to put someone more 'compliant' in the stead of the old IG? Compliant to his New World Order.

This is just another example of Obama's tightening fist around America...


news.yahoo.com...

sandrarose.com...

www.capitolhillblue.com...

[edit on 12-6-2009 by James Random]

Mod Edit: External Source Tags – Please Review This Link.

[edit on 12/6/2009 by Mirthful Me]

The IG found misuse of funds by Kevin Johnson who just happens to be a huge and wealthy Barack Obama supporter. The IG brought it up as he should and the powers to be decided not to investigate it. Kevin Johnson admitted wrong doing and said he would pay back 400,000. The IG who reported the whole thing, as he was supposed, was fired. Blatant political crony ism.

reply to post by jjkenobi


The question is, how many more people will get fired for doing their jobs and Obama not liking it and who will replace them? People who won't report misuse of funds by Obama's chums?

Yes. Johnson was a hardcore Obama supporter and this is cronyism, but will we see more stuff like this happen as the NWO creeps closer?

If you're not morally bankrupt, you probably won't make it too far. I'm sure that's what happened, this guy had a conscience.

Peace

I swear, it seems every day Obama is doing something that ticks me off. I wonder what the official reason will be.

Inspector General Reform Act of 2008

(Sec. 2) Amends the Inspector General Act of 1978 to require Inspectors General (IGs) for designated federal entities to be appointed without regard to political affiliation and solely on the basis of integrity and demonstrated ability in accounting, auditing, financial analysis, law, management analysis, public administration, or investigations.

(Sec. 3) Requires the President, the heads of designated federal entities, the Librarian of Congress, the Capitol Police Board, and the Public Printer to communicate to Congress in writing the reasons for removing or transferring an IG no later than 30 days before such removal or transfer.

Edit to add: Sponsors for this 2008 bill were:
#
# and 11 Co-Sponsors

* Sen. Daniel Akaka [D, HI]
* Sen. Thomas Carper [D, DE]
* Sen. Hillary Clinton [D, NY]
* Sen. Thomas Coburn [R, OK]
* Norm Coleman
* Sen. Susan Collins [R, ME]
* Sen. Charles Grassley [R, IA]
* Sen. Carl Levin [D, MI]
* Sen. Joseph Lieberman [I, CT]
* Barack Obama
* Ted Stevens

Although it doesn't seem that it ever passed the house and therefore is not law. I'll keep checking.

# Apr 24, 2008: Held at the desk.
# Apr 24, 2008: Received in the House.
# Apr 24, 2008: Message on Senate action sent to the House.
# Passed by Unanimous Consent in the Senate on Apr 23, 2008. Passed Senate with amendments by Unanimous Consent.
# Apr 23, 2008: Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent.



[edit on 12/6/2009 by Iamonlyhuman]

Existing thread here:
www.abovetopsecret.com...

Please add further comments to the ongoing discussion.
Thank you







-thread closed-



for future reference:
Search ATS