Trump fires 17 independent watchdogs at US government agencies

Donald Trump fired 17 independent watchdogs at multiple US government agencies on Friday, a person with knowledge of the matter said, eliminating a critical oversight component and clearing the way for the president to replace them with loyalists.

The inspectors general at agencies including the departments of state, defense and transportation were notified by emails from the White House personnel director that they had been terminated immediately, the source said on condition of anonymity.

The dismissals appeared to violate federal law, which requires the president to give both houses of Congress reasons for the dismissals 30 days in advance.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

An inspector general is an independent position that conducts audits and investigations into allegations of waste, fraud and abuse of power.

Agencies are pressing ahead with orders from Trump, who began his second presidency on Monday, to reshape the federal bureaucracy by scrapping diversity programs, rescinding job offers, and sidelining more than 150 national security and foreign policy officials.

Friday’s dismissals spared the justice department inspector general, Michael Horowitz, according to the New York Times. The Washington Post, which was first to report the dismissals, said most were appointees from Trump’s first White House term from 2017 to 2021.

US senator Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, called Trump’s action a “purge of independent watchdogs in the middle of the night”.

“President Trump is dismantling checks on his power and paving the way for widespread corruption,” she wrote on X.

Former Trump lawyer Sidney Powell, an ally of the president, defended the decision on X, saying: “Existing IGs are virtually worthless.”

“They may bring a few minor things to light but accomplish next to nothing,” she wrote. “The whole system needs to be revamped! They are toothless and protect the institution instead of the citizens.”

Many politically appointed leaders of agencies and departments come and go with each administration, but an inspector general can serve under multiple presidents.

During his first term, Trump fired five inspectors general in less than two months in 2020. This included at the state department, whose inspector general had played a role in the president’s impeachment proceedings.

Last year, Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden fired the inspector general of the US railroad retirement board after an investigation found the official had created a hostile work environment. In 2022, Congress strengthened protections for inspectors general, making it harder to replace them with handpicked officials and requiring additional explanations from a president for their removal.