U.S. Department of Homeland Security Inspector General Joseph Cuffari speaks in this undated U.S. Army photo. (Photo: U.S. Army)
DHS Officials Urge Biden to End 'Disastrous Leadership' of Embattled IG
In an anonymous letter, the Homeland Security staffers say Inspector General Joseph Cuffari's actions "embarrass the entire agency."
An anonymous letter published Friday by a watchdog group revealed officials at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General called on President Joe Biden to fire their boss, a scandal-plagued appointee of former President Donald Trump whose actions the staffers say "greatly hinder" the agency's mission.
"His actions embarrass the entire agency."
The letter--which was obtained and published by the Project on Government Oversight (POGO)--states that DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari "no longer has the support of his workforce," who "can no longer hope that the ship will right itself."
"We need help. We can no longer be silent when faced with continuous mismanagement of DHS OIG at its highest levels," the letter continues. "IG Cuffari has made it clear that he wishes to remain in his position, even in the face of prolonged, deserved criticism in the media, from Congress, from other oversight entities, and from his own staff."
Cuffari has rejected congressional demands for documents and blocked staff from testifying about the deletion of text messages sent by Secret Service agents and senior DHS officials before and on the day of the deadly January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
House Democrats have accused Cuffari of a "cover-up" for repeatedly waiting months to notify Congress about the existence of the deleted texts.
"His actions embarrass the entire agency," the letter contends. "His actions impede and greatly hinder our mission... DHS OIG will continue to fail under his disastrous leadership."
It adds, "You are the only one who can help us before DHS OIG are forever damaged by IG Cuffari."
POGO has also called for Biden to fire Cuffari, with the group's director of public policy, Liz Hempowicz, writing last month that his "shortcomings as an inspector general were clear long before they landed him in the middle of one of the most high-profile investigations of our time."
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just four days to go in our Spring Campaign, we are not even halfway to our goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
An anonymous letter published Friday by a watchdog group revealed officials at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General called on President Joe Biden to fire their boss, a scandal-plagued appointee of former President Donald Trump whose actions the staffers say "greatly hinder" the agency's mission.
"His actions embarrass the entire agency."
The letter--which was obtained and published by the Project on Government Oversight (POGO)--states that DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari "no longer has the support of his workforce," who "can no longer hope that the ship will right itself."
"We need help. We can no longer be silent when faced with continuous mismanagement of DHS OIG at its highest levels," the letter continues. "IG Cuffari has made it clear that he wishes to remain in his position, even in the face of prolonged, deserved criticism in the media, from Congress, from other oversight entities, and from his own staff."
Cuffari has rejected congressional demands for documents and blocked staff from testifying about the deletion of text messages sent by Secret Service agents and senior DHS officials before and on the day of the deadly January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
House Democrats have accused Cuffari of a "cover-up" for repeatedly waiting months to notify Congress about the existence of the deleted texts.
"His actions embarrass the entire agency," the letter contends. "His actions impede and greatly hinder our mission... DHS OIG will continue to fail under his disastrous leadership."
It adds, "You are the only one who can help us before DHS OIG are forever damaged by IG Cuffari."
POGO has also called for Biden to fire Cuffari, with the group's director of public policy, Liz Hempowicz, writing last month that his "shortcomings as an inspector general were clear long before they landed him in the middle of one of the most high-profile investigations of our time."
An anonymous letter published Friday by a watchdog group revealed officials at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General called on President Joe Biden to fire their boss, a scandal-plagued appointee of former President Donald Trump whose actions the staffers say "greatly hinder" the agency's mission.
"His actions embarrass the entire agency."
The letter--which was obtained and published by the Project on Government Oversight (POGO)--states that DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari "no longer has the support of his workforce," who "can no longer hope that the ship will right itself."
"We need help. We can no longer be silent when faced with continuous mismanagement of DHS OIG at its highest levels," the letter continues. "IG Cuffari has made it clear that he wishes to remain in his position, even in the face of prolonged, deserved criticism in the media, from Congress, from other oversight entities, and from his own staff."
Cuffari has rejected congressional demands for documents and blocked staff from testifying about the deletion of text messages sent by Secret Service agents and senior DHS officials before and on the day of the deadly January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
House Democrats have accused Cuffari of a "cover-up" for repeatedly waiting months to notify Congress about the existence of the deleted texts.
"His actions embarrass the entire agency," the letter contends. "His actions impede and greatly hinder our mission... DHS OIG will continue to fail under his disastrous leadership."
It adds, "You are the only one who can help us before DHS OIG are forever damaged by IG Cuffari."
POGO has also called for Biden to fire Cuffari, with the group's director of public policy, Liz Hempowicz, writing last month that his "shortcomings as an inspector general were clear long before they landed him in the middle of one of the most high-profile investigations of our time."