The president informed Congress of the move in a Friday-evening letter to the House and Senate intelligence committees.
President Donald Trump has fired the intelligence community’s chief watchdog, Michael Atkinson, who was the first to sound the alarm to Congress last September about an “urgent” complaint he’d received from an intelligence official involving Trump’s communications with Ukraine’s president.
Atkinson’s decision set in motion the congressional probe that culminated in Trump’s impeachment and ultimate acquittal in a bruising political and legal drama that consumed Washington for months.
Trump formally notified the Senate and House Intelligence Committees of his intention to fire Atkinson, to take effect 30 days from Friday, according to two congressional officials and a copy of the letter obtained by POLITICO dated April 3.
“This is to advise that I am exercising my power as president to remove from office the inspector general of the intelligence community, effective 30 days from today,” the president wrote.
Trump said in the letter that he “no longer” has the fullest confidence in Atkinson. “As is the case with regard to other positions where I, as president, have the power of appointment, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, it is vital that I have the fullest confidence in the appointees serving as inspectors general,” he wrote. “That is no longer the case with regard to this inspector general.”
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Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, called Atkinson’s firing “unconscionable,” and accused the president of an ongoing effort to politicize intelligence.
“In the midst of a national emergency, it is unconscionable that the president is once again attempting to undermine the integrity of the intelligence community by firing yet another intelligence official simply for doing his job,” Warner said in a statement.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) described the firing as “retribution” coming in the “dead of night” and called it “yet another blatant attempt by the president to gut the independence of the intelligence community and retaliate against those who dare to expose presidential wrongdoing.”
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- Discussion
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BREAKING: Trump has fired the intelligence community’s chief watchdog, who was the first to sound the alarm to Congress about an “urgent” complaint involving Trump’s communications with Ukrainehttps://t.co/2M1fLpbuSY
— POLITICO (@politico) April 4, 2020
Good point. Too distracted by impeachment to handle a pandemic, but not so distracted right now as people are dying byh the thousands that he can't take time to fire a career public servant as petty revenge. https://t.co/23mlQTKxtR
— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) April 4, 2020
*Can* the President remove the intelligence community IG? Yes. Is it pretty much an admission of guilt?
Also yes.— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) April 4, 2020
Late last night, DOJ inspector general Michael Horowitz—who also chairs CIGIE—released this striking statement: “IG Atkinson is known throughout the Inspector General community for his integrity…That includes his actions in handling the Ukraine whistleblower complaint.” pic.twitter.com/WupEmC5ddq
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) April 4, 2020
All because this guy did his job, followed the law, and determined that the whistleblower was credible. The president continually erodes the rule of law by putting pressure on executive branch officials who dare to do the right thing. https://t.co/An8tAPZBmG
— Heath Mayo (@HeathMayo) April 4, 2020
Abhorrent & Soviet. The man doesn’t believe in checks and balances. And yet our Founders wrote those checks and balances precisely to restrain someone like him. https://t.co/wckDc1kYhg
— Neal Katyal (@neal_katyal) April 4, 2020
Crooks hate cops. https://t.co/OZ9ngQetjb
— David Frum (@davidfrum) April 4, 2020
Trumps firing of Michael Atkinson can only be construed two ways; either as an admission of guilt or…oh, right…
It’s actually just an admission of guilt.
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) April 4, 2020
.@realDonaldTrump took a break from his colossal, historical incompetence late last night to remind us that he’s a criminal determined to cover up his crimes. https://t.co/xqwMIgH4EZ
— George Conway (@gtconway3d) April 4, 2020
Trump’s impeachment distracted him from preparing for a pandemic, but the pandemic did not distract him from firing the man he holds responsible for his impeachment.
— Windsor Mann (@WindsorMann) April 4, 2020
Well, Trump can’t go golfing, can’t hold rallies and the pandemic is boring him. So why shouldn’t he resume the purge?
Miserable, paranoid, narcissistic. No wonder he’s on his third wife and his adult kids are a mess.
Trump firing an Inspector General for doing his job is a declaration of deep commitment to corruption. This presidency is a crime organization.https://t.co/nZ1ro1cbdK
— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) April 4, 2020
So, doing his job. https://t.co/ph83iyn4zG
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) April 4, 2020
JUST IN: Striking new statement from IC inspector general Michael Atkinson, who was fired by Trump on Friday. “It is hard not to think that the President’s loss of confidence in me derives from my having faithfully discharged my legal obligations…” pic.twitter.com/qBLi59v9GB
— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) April 6, 2020
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