Why won’t Biden fill watchdog positions in his administration?
Hudson Crozier
The House Oversight Committee, in a Monday letter, asked President Joe Biden why he hasn’t filled several inspector general positions. Lawmakers noted alarming vacancies for these watchdog positions in the State Department and Treasury Department, which haven’t had an inspector general for over 1,000 days, and the Agency for International Development, which has gone more than 850 days without one.
“We write to express our concern that these vacancies with no nominee are limiting transparency and holding back efforts to ensure the federal government is working as efficiently as possible on behalf of the American people,” the letter reads.
VIOLENCE AGAINST TEACHERS CANNOT BE TOLERATED
About 14% of Biden’s agencies are missing an inspector general, according to the Federal Times.
The committee’s concern is entirely valid, as inspectors general routinely expose wrongdoing in the federal government, both intentional and unintentional, along with unaddressed problems that threaten their efficiency.
During Biden’s presidency alone, these agents have shed light on the military’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, declining health and morale among border personnel, unauthorized spying at the National Security Agency, and employee misconduct at the Pentagon and Department of Justice.
More famously, a DOJ inspector general report from 2019 revealed abuses in the FBI’s efforts to spy on former President Donald Trump’s campaign for alleged collusion with Russia. It found rampant factual “errors and omissions” in applications for surveillance warrants, which led to the FBI wiretapping a Trump campaign adviser without justification.
Unfortunately, when it comes to enabling transparency and oversight, the Biden administration is often neglectful or outright hostile.
Last year, nonprofit watchdog groups urged the DOJ to issue guidance for federal agencies on compliance with requests for public records under the Freedom of Information Act. Swift publication of this memo is typical for a new administration, but the DOJ waited until the following March to do it.
The DOJ also doesn’t want Americans learning about the Department of Homeland Security’s controversial project with private entities to censor political speech on social media during the 2020 election, which has become part of a pending First Amendment lawsuit against the government.
An email leaked this week showed a United States attorney asking someone involved in the project to delay responding to a FOIA request. She added that the DOJ wanted to review the requested documents “and assess whether we’ll have to file suit to protect them from disclosure.”
Notably, the State Department has been involved in these efforts to suppress what the government considers false information online and recently failed to meet a deadline for producing records to Congress about it.
Lawmakers and members of the public have a right to know about the agency’s activities, and the inspector general who is supposed to assist them does not yet exist.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The love of secrecy demonstrated by the Biden administration is never a sign of responsible government, regardless of the president’s party. Biden could begin countering this reputation by quickly nominating these crucial employees.
Hudson Crozier is a summer 2023 Washington Examiner fellow.