Sen. Chuck Grassley, the Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has established a reputation as a champion of inspectors general. So when Donald Trump fired 18 inspectors general without cause, in a move labeled the “midnight massacre,” many quickly looked to the Iowan for some leadership.
To a degree, Grassley did, in fact, step up. Four days after the firings, the longtime GOP senator and Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois wrote a joint letter to the president, explaining that his move appeared to sidestep the law. The duo added that it was incumbent on Trump to “immediately” provide information justifying the White House’s move.
Two weeks later, not only did the president fail to respond to Grassley’s call for an “immediate” response, Trump also decided to fire another inspector general without cause.
By all appearances, the president had effectively thumbed his nose at his own party’s longest-serving U.S. senator. Traditionally, it’s the sort of thing that might generate some bitterness or animosity.
With this in mind, the day after the White House tried to oust the inspector general at the U.S. Agency for International Development, HuffPost caught up with the Iowan, who conceded that Trump clearly had not followed the law related to IG firings. But that’s not all he said. From the report:
“I’d like to alert the president to the fact that he can abide by the law and still get rid of the people he wants to get rid of,” Grassley said. “He can put them on administrative leave for 30 days and send us a letter.” Asked by HuffPost if he planned to alert Trump himself, Grassley said, “I just did, by talking to you.”
In other words, it appears the powerful chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee believes the president ignored the law about the senator’s signature issue. He also likely realizes that the president blew off his demand for information.
But Grassley’s follow-up move was to make a comment to HuffPost — apparently hoping that Trump would see the quote and act accordingly.
The Republican lawmaker made a related comment about the inspectors general firings to a Politico reporter, saying, “The law isn’t being abided by.” And while that was certainly an incredible example of passive-voice phrasing, it was also a timely reminder in the wholesale breakdown in congressional oversight and our deteriorating system of checks and balances. In fairness, I should mention that Grassley might have a bold and aggressive follow-up plan, involving subpoenas, hearings and litigation. It’s possible, at least in theory, that the senator known for protecting the interests of inspectors general will soon leap into action, prioritizing the rule of law and the integrity of the existing system over partisan considerations. If so, I will gladly write about it. But in the meantime, it appears the Iowa Republican is falling far short on his own signature issue.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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