Steve Linick is the latest casualty in Trump’s ongoing post-impeachment purge of inspector generals, but according to two top Democratic lawmakers, his firing was also meant to shield Pompeo
Photo: Kevin LaMarque/POOL/AFP via Getty Images On Friday night, President Trump fired the inspector general of the State Department, Steve Linick, on the recommendation of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in what may have been an act of political retaliation over Linick investigating potential misconduct by Pompeo. A White House official confirmed to multiple reporters on Saturday that Pompeo had recommended firing Linick to Trump, and that the president agreed.
“It is our understanding that [Pompeo recommended firing Linick] because the inspector general had opened an investigation into wrongdoing by Secretary Pompeo himself,” the pair of Democratic lawmakers announced Saturday. “Such an action, transparently designed to protect Secretary Pompeo from personal accountability, would undermine the foundation of our democratic institutions and may be an illegal act of retaliation.
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