'He's a total disgrace': Trump defends firing U.S. intel watchdog

By Jeff Mason and James Oliphant

 

FILE PHOTO: Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson arrives to testify at a House Intelligence Committee closed-door hearing on a whistleblower complaint about President Donald Trump's dealings with Ukraine, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., October 4, 2019. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Saturday defended his decision to fire the top watchdog of the U.S. Intelligence Community, saying Michael Atkinson did "a terrible job" in handling the whistleblower complaint that triggered an impeachment probe of Trump last year.

 

"He took a fake report, and he brought it to Congress," Trump said during a briefing on the novel coronavirus pandemic.

 

Late on Friday, the White House told Atkinson, the Intelligence Community's inspector general, that he would be terminated from his position in 30 days.

 

He was a key figure in the run-up to impeachment, having found credible a complaint from a still-unnamed whistleblower within the administration that Trump abused his office in attempting to solicit Ukraine's interference in the 2020 U.S. election for his political benefit.

 

The president complained that after receiving the complaint, Atkinson did not come and speak to him about it at the White House. "He's a total disgrace," Trump said.

 

Trump inveighed against the whistleblower as well, calling him "fake" and politically biased.

 

"Frankly, somebody ought to sue his ass off," he said.

 

Atkinson's firing prompted concerns among some Congressional Republicans and criticism from Democrats.

 

U.S. Senator Richard Burr, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, praised Atkinson, while noting Trump has the authority to fire him.

 

"Like any political appointee, the inspector general serves at the behest of the Executive," Burr, a Republican from North Carolina, said in a statement on Saturday. "However, in order to be effective, the IG must be allowed to conduct his or her work independent of internal or external pressure."

 

U.S. Senator Charles Grassley, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, demanded a better explanation for Atkinson's firing.

 

"Congress has been crystal clear that written reasons must be given when IGs are removed for a lack of confidence," he said. "More details are needed from the administration."

 

Trump is trying to scare the watchdog community, Adam Schiff, a California Democrat and chairman of the House Intelligence Committee told MSNBC Saturday morning.

 

"He's decapitating the leadership of the intelligence community in the middle of a national crisis," he said. "It’s unconscionable, and of course it sends a message throughout the federal government and particular to other inspectors general."

 

Republican House Representative Jim Jordan, a staunch Trump supporter, mocked Schiff's concern about Atkinson's firing.

 

"He was Schiff's key impeachment enabler," Jordan wrote on Twitter.

 

Atkinson's firing comes as U.S. inspectors general, who are charged with independent oversight of federal agencies, were recently tasked with broad surveillance of the government's response to the coronavirus, including the historic $2.3 trillion fiscal package to mitigate its economic impact.

 

Democrats have expressed concerns about how the fiscal package will be doled out through the U.S. Treasury, headed by Steven Mnuchin.

 

Michael Horowitz, chair of the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE), an independent agency in the executive branch and the inspector general at the Department of Justice, defended Atkinson and vowed on Saturday to continue to conduct "aggressive" independent oversight of government programs.

 

"This includes CIGIE's Pandemic Response Accountability Committee and its efforts on behalf of American taxpayers, families, businesses, patients, and health care providers to ensure that over $2 trillion dollars in emergency federal spending is being used consistently with the law's mandate," Horowitz said in a statement.

 

In bringing the whistleblower complaint to Congress, Atkinson expressed concerns that Trump potentially exposed himself to "serious national security and counter-intelligence risks" when he pressed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy during a July 25 phone call to investigate Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden and his son, according to a Justice Department legal opinion.

 

After contentious, partisan hearings, the Democratic-led House of Representatives voted to impeach Trump but the Republican-led Senate acquitted him of the charges in early February.

 

(Reporting By Lucia Mutikani, Jeff Mason and James Oliphant; editing by Heather Timmons and Diane Craft)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-04-05

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Oh yea, trump loves to fire people especially in front of his supporters.

He did his job and got fired for it. So much for a built in watch dog system.

 

That said, I notice Trump is looking smaller these days. A new diet, or is this pandemic sucking the air out of him?!  He better pray that this pandemic doesn't hit Elvis country hard, if it does, say goodbye.

Oh I think our Donald is projecting lol especially that disgrace part

1 hour ago, rooster59 said:

'He's a total disgrace':

We all know that since 2016. 

Trump's war on intelligence proceeds.

On the bright side he makes generals here look intelligent at least for a nano or two????

Draining the Swamp one dirty rat ???? at a time. 

 

MAGA 

Trump supporters profess that the nation needs to be united now. Maybe Trump didn't get the message?

". . . a total disgrace."  Uh-huh, Doofus Donald still can't stop talking about himself.

Trump is one very insecure cat

4 hours ago, sammieuk1 said:

On the bright side he makes generals here look intelligent at least for a nano or two????

 

 

suppose he also makes some forum posters look intelligent also

Good news in a dark time.????

1 minute ago, JHolmesJr said:

Good news in a dark time.????

And definitely an appropriate question to answer during a coronavirus briefing.

5 hours ago, heybruce said:

Trump's war on intelligence proceeds.

Don't worry, he will lose most bigly against intelligence; Nobody lost biglier

From the OP...

 

U.S. Senator Richard Burr, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, praised Atkinson, while noting Trump has the authority to fire him.

 

Burr is a Republican, is trump also going to try and destroy him. IMO trump is a moral & ethical coward.

1 hour ago, atyclb said:

 

 

suppose he also makes some forum posters look intelligent also

Umm will have to think about that one????

1 hour ago, Cory1848 said:

 the “Trump can do no wrong” crowd 

aka the mullet for swastika family

11 minutes ago, simple1 said:

A deeply vindictive POTUS with a complex narcissistic disorder

 

Awwww....I seem to remember Obama firing people who displeased him left, right and centre.

IG was given enough room to present his fake complaint.

Case closed.....bye IG.

11 minutes ago, JHolmesJr said:

 

Awwww....I seem to remember Obama firing people who displeased him left, right and centre.

IG was given enough room to present his fake complaint.

Case closed.....bye IG.

Did Obama fire people for speaking truth to power? BTW the 'complaint' did not receive a fair hearing in the Senate - the decision was purely hyper partisan politics by Republicans in an appalling contravention of their Oath of Office.

Edited April 5, 20206 yr by simple1

7 minutes ago, JHolmesJr said:

 

Awwww....I seem to remember Obama firing people who displeased him left, right and centre.

IG was given enough room to present his fake complaint.

Case closed.....bye IG.

First off, there is no comparison between the turnover in the Trump adminstration and any other recent administration. 

Second, can you tell me where Obama said something like what Trump said: 

“I thought he did a terrible job, absolutely terrible,” Trump said at a press briefing at the White House. “He took a fake report and brought it to Congress… not a big Trump fan, that I can tell you.”

 

“That man is a disgrace to IGs,” Trump said of Atkinson. 

There's only one total disgrace and that's Trump himself.

Trump should have fired him a long time ago.

 

13 minutes ago, Jonnapat said:

There's only one total disgrace and that's Trump himself.

Wait for the next article, which I expect will be here in the next 48 hours, where he is lying that he has brokered a deal between Russia and SA ( calling the Saudi murderer a good friend) and that they have agreed to output cuts.

 

Both Russia and SA have already said that there have been no phone calls or talks at all

6 hours ago, Boon Mee said:

Draining the Swamp one dirty rat ???? at a time. 

 

MAGA 

Lock the little Donny pu*** up ????

Edited April 5, 20206 yr by Redline

I guess Trump followed his usual pattern of praising an appointee at the outset, then firing same appointee because said person adhered to the rule of law in preference to Trump's law.

He's a total disgrace!  Many say this about Trump and believe he too should be removed from office.

 

Wet dream.  Not going to happen.

7 hours ago, Boon Mee said:

MAGA 

While Brexit made the UK look like a joke globally. Trump is making the US look stupid globally. Certainly not MAGA. 

Fantastic news. Good riddance to swamp garbage. Now what we need is to keep digging and get the CIA plant (aka *whistleblower*), Adam Schiff and others under oath.

5 minutes ago, Crazy Alex said:

Fantastic news. Good riddance to swamp garbage. Now what we need is to keep digging and get the CIA plant (aka *whistleblower*), Adam Schiff and others under oath.

And what a great way to do it. At what is supposed to be a coronavirus briefing. Designed to inform the nation and bring it information in a non-partisan way. Very impressive. Clearly, Trump has a handle on himself.