The announcement came after Trump told House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi late Friday that he planned to dismiss State Department Inspector General Steve Linick. The lawmakers said Linick had apparently "opened an investigation into wrongdoing by Secretary Pompeo himself," and said the firing was "transparently designed to protect Secretary Pompeo from personal accountability ... and may be an illegal act of retaliation." Engel, who heads the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Menendez, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, requested that the White House and State Department turn over records related to Linick's dismissal. The State Department confirmed Linick's firing but did not comment on the reason -- or on whether Pompeo was under investigation. Since his acquittal by the Senate, Trump has fumed against a "Deep State" he sees as out to get him.

Source: Standard Digital May 17, 2020 05:45 UTC