Ranking Members Jamie Raskin, Robert Garcia Slam OMB Director Russell Vought and Trump Administration for Defunding Independent Watchdog Websites to Cover-Up Corruption
Washington, D.C. — Today, Rep. Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the Committee on the Judiciary, and Rep. Robert Garcia, Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, demanded that Office of Management and Budget Director and Project 2025 Architect Russell Vought stop illegally withholding congressionally-approved funding for the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE), an independent oversight body created by Congress. Vought’s unlawful actions have shut down websites for dozens of Inspectors General (IGs) that publish hotline numbers where whistleblowers can submit complaints of waste, fraud, and abuse and make reports detailing corruption available to the public. The funds at issue are not affected by the lapse in federal funding, yet Trump and Vought are deliberately using the Republican Shutdown as an excuse to cover up waste, fraud, and corruption and silence whistleblowers.
“When an Administration works this hard to silence government watchdogs—the officials charged with rooting out waste, fraud, and corruption—you have to ask: what are they trying to hide?” said Ranking Member Jamie Raskin. “Well, it seems like almost everything, above all the continuing demolition of most public functions. And now the Trump Administration is using the Republican Shutdown as a cover to shutter the websites of inspectors general. The money for these websites has been appropriated and is available right now. We’re demanding that Russell Vought release these funds immediately and stop this blatant cover-up of the rampant corruption that has defined this Administration.”
“This is a blatantly illegal attempt by the Trump Administration to cripple oversight of their rampant fraud and corruption. It’s clear they’re trying to silence independent watchdogs so their corruption and flagrant lawbreaking can’t be investigated. Inspectors General save taxpayers billions of dollars every year, root out waste, fraud, and abuse in our government, and are one of the strongest safeguards against the Trump Administration’s lawlessness. We should all be alarmed by the fact that this Administration has already tried to fire 19 IGs, and are now trying to take away more of their independence and make oversight nearly impossible. This attack on our government watchdogs is an attempt to let this Administration get away with more corruption than we’ve seen yet. Oversight Democrats will fight to hold them accountable and make sure our independent watchdogs have the power they need to protect our government and the American people,” said Ranking Member Robert Garcia.
In the letter to Director Vought, Ranking Members Jamie Raskin and Robert Garcia wrote, “The withholding of congressionally appropriated funding is an illegal attempt by the Trump Administration to cripple constitutionally mandated independent oversight of its activities. The Trump Administration is once again attempting to undermine these oversight organizations just months after it illegally fired 19 inspectors general and attempted to install several loyalists in their place. This is another shocking step in the effort to cover up the rampant fraud and corruption, as well as waste of taxpayer dollars, that has defined this Administration. If independent watchdogs are silenced, corruption and violations of the law by federal agencies will go un-investigated and a key safeguard will be eliminated. The consequences for the American people will be serious.”
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