Americorps IG Gerald Walpin had a job to do - root out corruption in the Americorps federal money-spending program. His one big mistake seems to be that he tried to do his job, and when his search for fraudsters led to a close friend of Obama's (former NBA star and current Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson), he soon found himself jobless. The Obama administration wants it made clear that that kind of professionalism, efficiency, and thoroughness in looking after the taxpayers' money simply won't be tolerated. Wonder if he'll appeal this?
Troubling Precedent as Judge Rules Against Gerald Walpin
When AmeriCorps Inspector General Gerald Walpin was fired a year ago, it was the first shot in what eventually became the Obama administration's "War on Watchdogs." After Walpin sued to win back his job, the case was repeatedly delayed until a federal judge dismissed it Thursday:
On Thursday, U.S. District Court Judge Richard Roberts threw out a lawsuit Walpin brought in an attempt to be restored to his position at the Corporation for National and Community Service, which runs Americorps and other programs. Walpin has claimed that his firing was political retaliation for his opposition to wasteful spending by the agency and for his aggressive investigation of a friend of Obama, Sacramento Mayor and former NBA player Kevin Johnson. The White House stridently denied any such motivation.
Roberts said a federal law passed in 2008 with Obama's support, the Inspector General Reform Act, did not allow Walpin the right to sue over what he contends was an improper removal. The judge also said that the requirement in the statute that Obama give Congress his reasons for any such firing was too vague for the courts to assess whether Obama's claim that he'd lost confidence in Walpin was sufficient.
Byron York of the Washington Examiner says, "[I]f the decision by U.S. District Judge Richard Roberts stands, in the future the White House will be able fire other inspectors general as it fired Walpin without fear of legal consequences."
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We need to fire Øbama on the squad. ..
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Sad to say, this isn't without precedence. Just ask the mechanic for Alaskan Airlines who blew the whistle on improper maintinence practices that 18 months later lead to the failure of the horizontal stablizer (without which, a plane is doomed). That mechanic was fired and the government sided with the airline. Worse still, the government warns if you blow the whistle (basically showing the FAA for not doing it's job), they need to find another line of work. This incident is no different in that it's only at the government level. Oh, what was the result of the FAA investigation. AA was negigent and was fined $500,000 (that's about $40K for ever life lost in the crash). Not one person went to prison or even lost their job except the whistle blower.
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