U.S. Small Business Administration Inspector General Fired For No Apparent Reason

On Friday, January 24, SBA Inspector General, Hannibal Ware, was fired from his post. The reason?

According to Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee Ranking Member Edward J. Markey, this is why:

“Donald Trump wants IG to stand for Ignore Graft and Ignore Guardrails. First, Donald Trump pardons cop beaters, and now he’s firing the cops on the beat that protect from fraud, mismanagement, and wrongdoing. We now know who will watch the watchers – Trump’s henchmen,” said Ranking Member Markey. “I am angered and disgusted – but not surprised – that President Trump has, in clear defiance of the Inspector General Reform Act of 1978, purged these critical posts. SBA Inspector General Hannibal Ware is an effective leader at SBA and has been lauded by members of both parties throughout his career.”

Before I continue with Senator Markey’s statement (from his Press Release I received via email), you need to know what the legal procedure is for removing an Inspector General.

Official Inspector General Removal Procedure

From Congressional Research Services at Congess.gov:

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“The removal procedure for presidentially appointed IGs is
found in Title 5, Section 403(b), of the U.S. Code. The
section reads in part:
An Inspector General may be removed from office
by the President. If an Inspector General is removed
from office or is transferred to another position or
location within an establishment, the President shall
communicate in writing the substantive rationale,
including detailed and case-specific reasons for any
such removal or transfer to both Houses of
Congress (including the appropriate congressional
committees), not later than 30 days before the
removal or transfer. Nothing in this subsection shall
prohibit a personnel action otherwise authorized by
law, other than transfer or removal.
For the IGs appointed by agency heads under Title 5,
Section 415, the same notice rule applies, except that the
head of the agency, rather than President, appoints and
removes the IG. For agencies headed by boards,
committees, or commissions, removal requires the written
concurrence of two-thirds of the members.“

I encourage you to make your own decision on whether what Trump did was within the law. Because the lawyers certainly will be looking at this!

Continued: Senator Markey Statement On SBA Inspector General Firing

Let’s continue with Senate Markey’s statement:

“Given the gravity of this situation, I am calling on Chair Ernst to delay the consideration of Kelly Loeffler to be Administrator of the Small Business Administration either until Inspector General Ware is reinstated or until a qualified and impartial nominee to replace him is confirmed by the Senate. We cannot let Donald Trump undermine our system of checks and balances and enact his dangerous policies without an independent inspector general to provide proper oversight.”

This is serious stuff. The IG oversees everything the SBA does.

And it’s important for small business owners to know what’s happening at SBA headquarters in D.C. Just like with any U.S. government agency etc.

Note: 16 other Inspector Generals were fired by Trump Friday.

(Top image courtesy of https://www.sbc.senate.gov/public/)