Jonathon Berman, jonathon.berman@sierraclub.org
Yesterday, The Hill reported that a Trump political appointee will take over as the head inspector general (IG) overseeing investigations at the Department of the Interior. Suzanne Israel Tufts previously worked at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, where she replaced a career staffer who was demoted after refusing to sign off on HUD Secretary Ben Carson’s purchase of a $31,000 dining set. In his 18 months at the agency, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has become the most investigated Interior Secretary ever, facing inquiries into a number of attempts to use his position to enrich himself and his friends at American taxpayers’ expense, as well as shady dealings with the chairman of Halliburton.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders must answer the following questions about what appears to be a cover-up for Ryan Zinke:
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The move to reassign Suzanne Israel Tufts to Interior, comes despite her not having any credentials qualifying her for the position and, in fact, comes after she replaced a HUD official who refused to sign off on Ben Carson’s own corrupt behavior. This change comes under deeply suspicious circumstances. What role did Ryan Zinke play in acquiring a political appointee to oversee what should be impartial investigations? If Zinke is innocent, wouldn’t he want to preserve the integrity of these investigations?
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Ryan Zinke is the most investigated Interior Secretary in history, despite serving less than two years in the role. Why are Donald Trump and Ryan Zinke trying to cover-up the investigations into these scandals? Shouldn’t Trump act in the public’s best interest and fire Zinke rather than cover-up his actions?
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The Office of the Inspector General for any department or agency is to serve as an unbiased investigator into ethical and illegal actions taken by government officials. Why then, is Donald Trump moving a political appointee who ascended to their position under suspect circumstances to oversee investigations into the man who is currently the most corrupt member of the Trump Cabinet?
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Donald Trump has already fired three cabinet members for violating laws and ethics, including disgraced former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt who sought to cover-up his actions and even distract from them by pointing to Zinke’s own scandals. Why would Donald Trump find it appropriate to assign a political appointee to helm the investigations into yet another corrupt cabinet member?
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