Oversight

House bill proposes nearly 50% cut to GAO; Senate rejects

| Importance: 7/10

House Appropriations Committee advanced a Legislative Branch bill on June 27, 2025, proposing to cut the Government Accountability Office (GAO) budget by nearly 50% and limiting its ability to enforce impoundment laws. The cuts would cripple Congress’s primary watchdog agency responsible for …

House Appropriations Committee GAO (Government Accountability Office) Senate Appropriations Committee House Republicans Gene Dodaro budget congress oversight gao impoundment +3 more
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Biden Leaves 14 Inspector General Positions Vacant, Some for Over 2,000 Days

| Importance: 6/10

The Biden administration maintained 14 Inspector General vacancies across federal agencies, with some positions unfilled for over 2,000 days, severely weakening government oversight. The Export-Import Bank IG position remained vacant since June 2014 (2,664 days), while Treasury’s IG spot was …

Joe Biden Joseph Cuffari Project On Government Oversight Inspectors General oversight inspectors-general government-accountability institutional-weakness
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IRS Whistleblowers Testify Hunter Biden Investigation Was Obstructed by DOJ

| Importance: 7/10

IRS supervisory agent Gary Shapley and case agent Joseph Ziegler testified before House Oversight Committee that the Justice Department investigation into Hunter Biden was ‘slow walked’ with political interference. They alleged prosecutors blocked scrutiny of Joe Biden’s potential …

Gary Shapley Joseph Ziegler Hunter Biden David Weiss House Oversight Committee oversight obstruction-of-justice whistleblower political-interference
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Trump Fires 5 Inspectors General in 6 Weeks to Block Investigations

| Importance: 8/10

President Trump fired five inspectors general in six weeks during spring 2020, each investigating potential administration wrongdoing. The purge included State Department IG Steve Linick (investigating Pompeo’s use of staff for personal errands and Saudi arms sales), Intelligence Community IG …

Donald Trump Steve Linick Michael Atkinson Glenn Fine Mitch Behm +1 more inspectors-general obstruction-of-justice oversight accountability authoritarian-tactics
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Trump Dismisses State Department Inspector General Steve Linick

| Importance: 8/10

President Trump fired State Department Inspector General Steve Linick on May 15, 2020, amid an ongoing investigation into Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The dismissal was part of a broader pattern of removing government watchdogs, with House Democrats suggesting the firing was an act of …

Donald Trump Mike Pompeo Steve Linick Eliot Engel Nancy Pelosi trump-administration state-department inspector-general political-interference oversight
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Air Force review finds ~6% of Scotland overnights at Trump Turnberry; DHS OIG tallies USSS spend at resort during 2018 visit

| Importance: 6/10

An Air Force internal review reported that about 6% (39 of 659) of aircrew overnights near Prestwick Airport were at Trump Turnberry; most crews stayed closer to the airfield or in Glasgow. Separately, DHS OIG reported about $9,662 in Secret Service payments to Turnberry for rooms, golf carts, and …

U.S. Air Force U.S. Secret Service DHS Office of Inspector General Trump Turnberry travel-spending conflicts oversight
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GSA deemed Trump Old Post Office lease 'compliant'; agency watchdog later faulted failure to consider Emoluments Clause

| Importance: 8/10

On March 23, 2017, the General Services Administration (GSA) announced that its contracting officer found the Trump Old Post Office LLC in compliance with the lease’s Section 37.19 (the “no elected official” clause). In January 2019, the GSA Inspector General reported that the …

General Services Administration Trump Old Post Office LLC Emily Murphy GSA Office of Inspector General emoluments gsa lease oversight
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