Watchdog: State Dept lied about rescinding woman's award The State Department's internal watchdog has determined that the agency lied to the public and Congress about the reasons it rescinded a prestigious award to a Finnish journalist who had been critical of the Trump administrationWASHINGTON -- The State Department’s internal watchdog has determined that the agency lied about the reasons it rescinded a prestigious award to a Finnish journalist, finding she was denied the honor because of her criticism of President Donald Trump. The agency's inspector general, however, said in a report issued Friday that her social media posts critical of Trump were the primary reason the award was rescinded. “Because decisions as to IWOC awardees are solely within the department’s discretion, the decision to rescind Ms. Aro’s award appears to have been an authorized exercise of the Department’s broad discretion to select awardees," it said. The State Department “misled the public and Congress about why it rescinded Ms. Aro’s award, covering up that her social media posts were the reason the award was withdrawn. At a department press briefing, a spokesman characterized assertions that the decision was based on Aro's social media statements as “speculation” and refused to discuss the selection process further.

Source: ABC News September 25, 2020 14:57 UTC