{"id":2263196,"date":"2024-06-09T07:30:02","date_gmt":"2024-06-09T11:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/who-watches-the-watchdogs-group-overseeing-inspectors-general-under-pressure\/"},"modified":"2024-06-09T07:33:39","modified_gmt":"2024-06-09T11:33:39","slug":"who-watches-the-watchdogs-group-overseeing-inspectors-general-under-pressure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/who-watches-the-watchdogs-group-overseeing-inspectors-general-under-pressure\/","title":{"rendered":"Who oversees the overseers? Pressure mounts on group monitoring Inspectors General"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwho-watches-the-watchdogs-group-overseeing-inspectors-general-under-pressure%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2263196&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Ment-intrigue-federal-integrity-watchdog\/171495\/&#8221; target=&#8221;_blank&#8221; rel=&#8221;noopener&#8221; \u200ctitle=&#8221;dismissed&#8221;>dismissed<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<p>The \u200drecent resignation of Social Security Administration Inspector General Gail Ennis raises concerns about the governing body that oversees\u2063 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/better-than-expected-u-s-economy-added-638000-jobs-in-october-unemployment-dropped-to-6-9\/\" title=\"Better Than Expected: U.S. Economy Added 638,000 Jobs in October, Unemployment Dropped to 6.9%\">federal government<\/a>\u2062 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/thursday-october-21st-2021\/\" title=\"Thursday | October 21st, 2021\">inspectors general<\/a>. Inspectors general \u200bare responsible for monitoring government agencies \u2062and are overseen by\u200d the Integrity Committee of the Counsel of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE). This committee has faced accusations\u200b of\u200c harassment and politicization, with Ennis being the latest example. In recent months, another <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/flashback-former-ag-barr-initiated-spying-program-on-americans-back-in-1992\/\" title=\"FLASHBACK: Former AG Barr Initiated Spying Program on Americans Back in 1992\">inspector general<\/a>, Martin Dickman, was also fired by \u200dPresident Joe Biden, leading to a letter from Senator Chuck Grassley seeking more information and criticism from Dickman&#8217;s\u2062 lawyer. Ennis&#8217; resignation \u200bwas also accompanied by a strongly worded letter citing retaliation for reporting violations of law by\u200d CIGIE and the \u200cJustice \u2063Department. The\u2062 New Civil Liberties Alliance has also filed a lawsuit against\u200c CIGIE on behalf of inspector general Joseph Cuffari, who has been under investigation for four years. However, \u2063the case was later dismissed. These instances have raised concerns about the politicization and overreach of CIGIE, causing questions about their effectiveness and objectivity in overseeing inspectors general.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The ouster of a second <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/federal-government\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"federal government\">federal government<\/a> inspector general within two months is leading to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/2990179\/ig-ousted-biden-pushes-back-assist-grassley\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"federal government\">questions <\/a>about the group that oversees them.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/social-security\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Social Security\">Social Security<\/a> Administration Inspector General Gail Ennis <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2024\/05\/31\/social-security-watchdog-gail-ennis-resigns\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Social Security\">resigned<\/a> on May 31 in the midst of a lengthy investigation into her office.<\/p>\n<p>Inspectors general are charged with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/oversight\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"overseeing\">overseeing<\/a> various government agencies, and are themselves overseen by a group of fellow watchdogs called the Integrity Committee of the Counsel of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency.<\/p>\n<p>CIGIE is increasingly finding itself accused of harassment and politicization. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe more we learn about the Integrity Committee, the more concerns I have about the way it operates,\u201d Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) said. \u201cIt appears they selectively choose which allegations to fully investigate. They have weaponized their investigative process against Inspectors General who are out of step with the goals and desires of the committee itself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He sees Ennis as the latest example in a continuing problem.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGail Ennis is unfortunately not the first Inspector General impacted by their unwieldiness this year, and is unlikely to be the last,\u201d Biggs said.<\/p>\n<p>In March, President Joe Biden <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/2945146\/biden-fires-railroad-official-office-since-1994-hostile-work-environment\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"fired\">fired<\/a> longtime Railroad Retirement Board IG Martin Dickman, who held the position for nearly 30 years but had been under a CIGIE investigation since January 2023.<\/p>\n<p>CIGIE said Dickman created a hostile work environment, but his firing led to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/2990179\/ig-ousted-biden-pushes-back-assist-grassley\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"letter\">letter<\/a> from Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) seeking more information, and to a scathing statement from Dickman\u2019s lawyer, Justin Weddle.<\/p>\n<p>Weddle said CIGIE\u2019s Integrity Committee \u201clacks accountability, fairness, and transparency,\u201d and accused it of \u201ctossing around conclusory and amorphous phrases such as \u2018toxic work environment\u2019 \u2014 as if they had been scrutinized and found credible in a process conducted according to proper procedures. They were not.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Two months later, Ennis resigned amid another lengthy CIGIE investigation. CIGIE\u2019s draft report said she had obstructed its investigation and cited falling morale and reports that she levied excessive fines against people accused of disability fraud, the <em>Washington Post <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2024\/05\/31\/social-security-watchdog-gail-ennis-resigns\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"reported\">reported<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>However, Ennis, a Trump appointee who was confirmed for the position in 2019, wrote a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/bette-midler-apologizes-after-calling-west-virginians-poor-illiterate-and-strung-out\/\" title=\"Bette Midler Apologizes After Calling West Virginians, \u2018Poor, Illiterate, And Strung Out\u2019\">strongly worded response<\/a> to the report one day before announcing her resignation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis investigation and reporting constitute retaliation for disclosing what I and my office reasonably believed to be violations of law and policy by CIGIE and [Justice Department IG] Michael Horowitz,\u201d she wrote. \u201cEach step I and my office have taken to discuss our concerns in good faith has been met with further retaliation. The process has exhausted and disheartened me, as was likely intended.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The letter was addressed to Amtrak Inspector General Kevin Winters, who leads the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ignet.gov\/cigie\/committees\/integrity-committee\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Integrity Committee\">Integrity Committee<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe IG community has become politicized under the influence of IG Horowitz and his handpicked CIGIE leadership, who have abused CIGIE investigatory authority to consolidate power and influence within the community,\u201d she wrote. \u201cI spoke up against CIGIE overreach, opposing one of these abusive policies IG Horowitz implemented\u2026 Unfortunately, I was appointed by a Republican president, and I cannot match the political patronage wielded by IG Horowitz and CIGIE leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The <em>Washington Examiner <\/em>has reached out to Winters and Horowitz for comment. <\/p>\n<p>The complaints against Ennis included allegedly creating a hostile work environment, similar to those lodged against Dickman. <\/p>\n<p>A third inspector general, Joseph Cuffari of the Department of Homeland Security, has been under a CIGIE investigation for four years.<\/p>\n<p>The New Civil Liberties Alliance <a href=\"https:\/\/nclalegal.org\/case\/kristen-fredricks-et-al-v-council-of-the-inspectors-general-on-integrity-and-efficiency-et-al\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"filed suit\">filed suit<\/a> against CIGIE last year on Cuffari\u2019s behalf, saying he \u201chas been endlessly harassed and had his office\u2019s resources drained by a series of baseless inquiries.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That case was later <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govexec.com\/oversight\/2023\/11\/judge-tosses-igs-lawsuit-alleging-harassment-oversight-body-investigating-him\/391775\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">dismissed<\/a> on grounds that the investigation itself did not amount to unlawful harassment, but NCLA attorney John Vecchione maintains that the CIGIE process is riddled with problems.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAlthough the courts say you can be investigated forever, what we say is that the process is the punishment,\u201d Vecchione said. \u201cFrom what I\u2019ve seen, it\u2019s just an endless series of \u2018are you still beating your wife\u2019 type questions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>CIGIE is an independent entity within the executive branch of the federal government, and its members are not appointed by the president. <\/p>\n<p>While the investigations into Cuffari, Ennis, and Dickman have lasted for months or even years, CIGIE has also faced questions about failing to investigate other matters.<\/p>\n<p>In late May, Biggs and eight other Republican members of Congress sent a<a href=\"https:\/\/biggs.house.gov\/sites\/evo-subsites\/biggs.house.gov\/files\/evo-media-document\/biggs-letter-to-IC-re-WilmerHale-report.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title> letter<\/a> to Winters asking why his committee had not investigated allegations against DHS IG employees, which were submitted by Cuffari.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis failure is a dereliction of the committee\u2019s statutory duty to ensure accountability among the community of Inspectors General and has led to serious questions about the politicization of the Integrity Committee itself,\u201d they wrote. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Winters wrote back on June 3, saying he was limited in his response due to the ongoing nature of a related investigation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe fact that [the case] remains under investigation limits the degree it can be discussed,\u201d he wrote. \u201cWhile this complex investigation is ongoing, the IC is unable to provide substantive updates.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The removal of a second federal inspector general in two months raises concerns about the oversight body. Social Security Administration Inspector General Gail Ennis resigned on May 31 amid an extensive probe into her office. Inspectors general are responsible for monitoring government agencies<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2635,"featured_media":2263197,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AP24096430907511.jpg.optimal.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2263196","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/AP24096430907511.jpg.optimal.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2263196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2635"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2263196"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2263196\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2263197"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2263196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2263196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2263196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}