UPDATED: BREAKING: Glenn Fine Out As DoD IG
This is really very big. You need to understand that Glenn Fine is sort of an institution in the the DC world of Inspectors General. He was there at the beginning and has a great reputation in the Establishment. He was IG at DoJ when I was interviewed in connection with the Hanssen case--in which there was no real accountability. At this point I don't know what's behind this move. It's quite possible that it has to do with Durham's ongoing investigation and the involvement of DoD personnel in the Dem Impeachment Theater. I'm sure we'll be hearing more.
On the other hand, ponder this from Wikipedia :
On March 30, 2020, Fine was named chair of The Pandemic Response Accountability Committee , to oversee the $2 trillion stimulus funds signed into law by President Donald Trump in response to the coronavirus outbreak. On April 7, 2020, Fine was removed from the position by President Trump.
Did Trump learn something about who Fine was cooperating with in that new Pandemic position? Here's how this move worked, as you'll see from the AP account below.
DoJ IG Michael Horowitz chairs the IG council--all the IGs in DC. With formation of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee Horowitz moved quickly to appoint Fine to head The Pandemic committee on March 30, 2020. Trump moved just as quickly to nominate a replacement inspector general at the Pentagon and appointed an acting one to serve in Fine’s place . Then, today, Trump dismissed Fine from his newfangled Pandemic position. It was a sort of Wuhan Firedrill, and now Fine has no place to sit--or to hang his hat. He'll return to DoD, but will be second fiddle to the new acting guy.
There's no way in the world that Trump didn't have this in mind, and there's no way in the world he didn't consult closely with his WH counsel, Pat Cipollone, who led the impeachment defense team. And quite likely with AG Barr as well. I have to believe that this ties in to the ongoing house cleaning of the Intelligence Community.
President Donald Trump has removed the inspector general tapped to chair a special oversight board of the $2.2 trillion economic package intended to help businesses and individuals affected by the coronavirus, officials said Tuesday.
Glenn Fine, the acting Defense Department inspector general and a veteran watchdog, had been selected by peers last month for the position. Now it’s unclear who will oversee the rescue law.
The move threatens to upend the rigorous oversight that Democrats in Congress demanded for the huge sums of money being pumped into the American economy because of the virus.President Donald Trump has removed the inspector general tapped to chair a special oversight board of the $2.2 trillion economic package intended to help businesses and individuals affected by the coronavirus, officials said Tuesday.
Oversight. Right.
Trump’s removal of Fine follows his late-night firing on Friday of Michael Atkinson, the intelligence community inspector general who forwarded to Congress a whistleblower complaint that ultimately led to the president’s impeachment in the House.
On Monday, the president also publicly condemned the acting Health and Human Services watchdog over a survey of hospitals about the coronavirus response.
...
Michael Horowitz, the Justice Department inspector general and chair of a council of watchdogs, had moved quickly last month to appoint Fine the head of the new coronavirus oversight board.
But Fine will no longer be able to serve in the role [DoD IG] because Trump has nominated a replacement inspector general at the Pentagon and appointed an acting one to serve in Fine’s place, according to an email from an assistant Defense Department inspector general that was obtained by The Associated Press.
The demotion disqualifies Fine from serving on the oversight board , which was created by Congress to be the nexus of oversight for coronavirus funding. He will instead revert to the position of principal deputy inspector general.
Brace yourselves.
UPDATE: Commenter EZ makes the excellent point that one way to begin to understand the sidelining of Glenn Fine has to do with the years long affair of Adam Lovinger, the whistleblower at Office of Net Assessment (ONA). ONA, of course, was the conduit for paying Stefan Halper for his role in the Russia Hoax attempt to stop Trump from becoming President. Did Fine have a role in covering that up? Did he have a role in stonewalling attempts by Sen. Grassley and later John Durham in obtaining ONA records? That's one useful avenue of inquiry.