Trump Claims Power to Gag Watchdog Overseeing Virus Stimulus
Trump Claims Power to Gag Watchdog Overseeing Virus Stimulus
(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump said the inspector general who’ll oversee hundreds of billions in aid to curb economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic cannot tell Congress if the government stonewalls his office without the president’s approval.
In a statement issued Friday to accompany his signature on the bill, Trump said the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery, or SIGPR, cannot go to Congress if refused information by agencies about loans and investments made by the Treasury secretary.
Creation of the oversight post was a key concession by Senate Republicans during the bill’s hasty development, sought by Democrats to ensure oversight over hundreds of billions of dollars in potential loans and spending.
The inspector general will have the authority to seek information from government agencies, and report to congress any refusal of a reasonable request. Trump said in the statement that he won’t let that happen without his approval.
“I do not understand, and my administration will not treat, this provision as permitting the SIGPR to issue reports to the Congress without the presidential supervision required by the Take Care Clause” in the Constitution, Trump wrote.
The White House and the Treasury did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
A Democratic aide said Democrats anticipated Trump’s move and had insisted on layers of oversight, including a congressional panel, being put in place to ensure the funds are properly used.
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