Posted on 04/06/2020 1:40:32 PM PDT by LibWhacker
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, is breaking with President Trump's decision to fire Michael Atkinson, the inspector general for the intelligence community, saying his removal was "not warranted."
"While I recognize that the President has the authority to appoint and remove Inspectors General, I believe Inspector General Atkinson served the intelligence community and the American people well, and his removal was not warranted," she said in a statement over the weekend.
Collins noted that by giving the heads of the House and Senate Intelligence committees a 30-day notification that he was removing Atkinson, Trump followed a 2008 law on inspectors general that she co-authored. But the senator, who is facing a tough reelection race in the fall, added that she didn't find Trump's "rationale" for firing Atkinson to be "persuasive."
Trump sent shockwaves through Washington when he announced on Friday night, in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, that he was firing Atkinson, who had handled the whistleblower complaint related to Trump's actions toward Ukraine that sparked the House impeachment inquiry.
Trump defended the firing during a press conference on Saturday and called Atkinson a "disgrace" to inspectors general.
"I thought he did a terrible job. Absolutely terrible. He took a whistleblower report, which turned out to be a fake report ... and he brought it to Congress with an emergency," Trump told reporters at a White House briefing. "Not a big Trump fan, that I can tell you."
Atkinson, in a statement, said he believes Trump fired him for carrying out his "legal obligations."
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who has defended whistleblowers and authored whistleblower legislation, said "more details are needed from the administration." Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) said it was Trump's "prerogative" to fire him but "I think we should get more detail."
He was not a “watchdog,” he is a jackal.
not her call
we need to stop allowing other pols from micromanaging and armchair quarterbacking the president who has the authority to hire and fire many specific positions.
she can stfu and foad along with all the socialist libtards and libtard media muppets
I wonder if Collins has seen the testimony of Atkinson that Nunes referred to. Or, if it was kept partitioned and classified (she’s in the Senate, the testimony was to the House Intelligence Committee, IIRC).
That testimony reportedly made it clear that Atkinson ignored the legal advice he’d sought, consulted with Schiff or Schiff’s representatives, and changed pre-existing requirements to accept hearsay and to apply it to out-of-agency areas.
“Jeb, its Pelosi....again on the phone”
No Susan he is a traitor!
His “real time” ALTERING of the “whistleblower rules” to accommodate this whistleblower is enough reason.
Even if it wasn’t, which it was, why does it have to be warranted?
I to laid off from some jobs in my 20s (not the best employee then) and I never quite knew if it was “warranted” or not.
It didn’t matter. I was gone
Ms. Collins should have the decency to STFU, and go about what is her business, and stay the ‘H’ out of the Presidents.
That is all that the idiot needed to say.
Well Susan, I guess you’re declaring that our President must sit back and take it like a good little pushover republican, right?
This bitch should be immediately ejected from the Republican party just for this bullshit alone. She knows exactly what that son of a bitch pulled and she’s defending him?
Screw her.
Go ahead Susan tell Trump supporters to sit out the election. If you don’t want there support say so.
If your counting on ANTI-Trump folks for your re-election why should ardent Trump supporters bother voting for you?
One would think that Senators would be smarter.
She needs to go.
Was he legally obligated to modify the whistleblower form to accommodate the FAKE whistleblower? The fake whistleblower (i.e., leaker) violated IC rules and protocol and went straight to Congress anyway.
What a steaming pant load. He should have been sacked immediately after "fixing" the form. The fix was in, alright.
Isn’t this her last term? I hope so. She’s a constant thorn in the side of all conservatives. I think she does it to feel powerful.
The only thing President Trump could do to placate Congress would be to ask permission beforehand for any executive branch action he is planning to take. Even then one half of them would still be whining to the press.
The Deep State ‘Rat changed the rules to allow sedition if not treason.
Should have stopped right there, Senator Collins.
As soon as it became known he altered the whistleblower form to enable the FAKE whistleblower (who had no authority to do what he did), he should have been sacked. It is egregious for a top-level government official to move the goalposts like that. He is guilty as sin.
If all that happens to him is getting sacked, he’s getting off lucky. That should be a criminal offense with a LONG prison term.
Thank you, not-President Collins for your input.
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