Joe Kottke
January 26, 2025
New York State Inspector General Lucy Lang condemned Trump's firing of 18 inspectors general in the federal government yesterday, calling his actions a “threat to democracy.”
“Inspectors General are the taxpayers’ guardians, ensuring oversight of agencies responsible for billions of dollars and countless programs affecting daily life," she said in a release today. "Without their independence, our government risks spiraling into unchecked power and corruption.”
Before the terminations — which impacted inspectors general from the Defense Department, State Department, Health and Human Services Department and the Department of Labor — Lang published an opinion piece in City & State, writing that inspector generals are at risk under the Trump administration.
New York inspector general calls Trump's firings a 'threat to democracy', continued
In the opinion piece, published on Jan. 18, Lang argued that Congress needs to create "explicit protections against presidential retaliation for doing their jobs."
Now, Lang is calling for renewed bipartisan efforts to protect inspectors general.
“The history of bipartisan support for IG independence must prevail over the dangerous precedent of partisanship that undermines their work,” she said.
