“The desire to demonstrate strength”: why Trump decided to dismiss the inspector general of intelligence

Donald Trump decided to dismiss Michael Atkinson, general inspector of intelligence services, who had previously become one of the key figures in the process of launching the impeachment process. The head of the White House informed Congress about this by sending appropriate letters.

Two messages with identical contents were addressed to Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee Richard Burr, Senior Democrat in the corresponding committee, Mark Warner, as well as Chairman of the House Committee of Intelligence Adam Schiff and senior Republican in the same committee, Devin Nunez.

“I hereby inform you that, within the framework of my presidential powers, I am relieving the general inspector of the intelligence community from office. This decision will enter into force 30 days after today, ”the letter says.

Trump explained his step by saying that it is “extremely important” to contribute to improving the economic efficiency and effectiveness of federal programs and events.

“Inspectors general play a critical role in achieving these goals. As is the case with other posts, to which I, as president, have the right to appoint persons on the recommendation and with the consent of the Senate, it is imperative that I fully trust the employees appointed to the post of inspector general. In the case of the current inspector general, this is no longer the case, ”Trump explained in his message.

He also noted that the candidacy for the post of inspector general of intelligence services will be presented to the Senate “later”. According to the head of the White House, this will be the person whom he “fully trusts” and who “would satisfy the relevant requirements.”

Atkinson assumed his duties as Inspector General of Intelligence Services in 2018. Prior to that, he worked for more than 15 years at the US Department of Justice.

• Intelligence Inspector General Michael Atkinson
• © Jonathan Ernst / Reuters

Justified measure

Recall that it was Atkinson who told Congress last September that he received a complaint from an anonymous White House employee about the content of Trump’s conversation with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky.

Based on this complaint, Democrats in the House of Representatives initiated an investigation, during which a number of employees of the administration and the US State Department testified against Trump. According to them, the American president allegedly put pressure on Zelensky to get incriminating evidence on former US Vice President Joe Biden, which is a violation of the Constitution. Trump has repeatedly denied the charges against him. The absence of pressure from the US president was also announced by Vladimir Zelensky.

• USA congress
• Reuters
• © Molly Riley

Nevertheless, on January 19, representatives of the US Democratic Party handed over to the Senate a detailed justification for removing Trump from power. However, in early February 2020, the Senate acquitted the head of state on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of the Congress.

Throughout the impeachment process, Trump repeatedly called for the identity of the anonymous informant to be revealed, but this did not happen.

“This whistleblower provided false information ... He must testify in person. Written answers are not acceptable! Where is the second whistleblower now? He evaporated, as soon as I published the transcript of the conversation. Does he even exist? Where is this informant? This is a setup! ” - wrote the American president on Twitter.

The Whistleblower gave false information & dealt with corrupt politician Schiff. He must be brought forward to testify. Written answers not acceptable! Where is the 2nd Whistleblower? He disappeared after I released the transcript. Does he even exist? Where is the informant? Con!

As political analyst Alexander Asafov noted in a conversation with RT, the decision to dismiss Michael Atkinson could have been caused by “a desire to demonstrate strength and create certain consequences” for the official.

Trump has every right to do so, says Yuri Rogulev, director of the US Roosevelt Foundation for the Study of the United States at Moscow State University.

“Here you need to understand that the entire intelligence community, including the CIA and other services, reports directly to the president. He is their chief. Therefore, Trump has the right to put at the head of these services those people whom he can count on, ”the analyst said in an interview with RT.

Rogulev also recalled that Atkinson is far from the first high-ranking intelligence officer dismissed by the current head of the White House. However, such a "staff turnover" is reasonable, the expert believes.

“After all, the current president of the United States came to the White House from the side - he initially did not have his own team. In addition, the US leader does not want intelligence to work against him. He seeks to create a reliable and efficient mechanism, the management of which would not weave any conspiracies behind him, ”the analyst explained.

Pandemic carte blanche

After receiving a letter from the head of the White House about his intention to dismiss Atkinson, the Democrats and opponents of Trump again talked about the abuse of power by the president at a time dangerous to the United States.

So, the deputy head of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Senator and Member of the Democratic Party Mark Warner called Trump’s decision “outrageous” and accused the president of his tireless desire to politicize the intelligence services.

“Against the backdrop of the state of emergency in the country, it is outrageous that the president once again seeks to undermine the authority of the intelligence community by firing another intelligence officer who was just doing his job,” Warner wrote on his Twitter page.

In the midst of a national emergency, it is unconscionable that the President is once again attempting to undermine the integrity of the intelligence community by firing yet another intelligence official, the ICIG, simply for doing his job.

Democrat Adam Schiff, chairman of the House’s Intelligence Committee, called Atkinson’s dismissal “retribution under cover of night,” adding that it’s “another flagrant attempt by the president to weaken the independence of the intelligence community and take revenge on those who dare to expose Trump’s offenses.”

Mark Zayed, a lawyer for an informant who reported on Trump’s telephone conversation with Zelensky, called the dismissal of the inspector general “a delayed act of retaliation” for Atkinson “having duly examined the whistleblower complaint.”

“This shameful act undermines the ethical foundations of dealing with whistleblowers,” Zaid wrote on Twitter. “It's time for the Republican Party senators to uphold the rule of law and condemn the president’s decision.”

“The firing of Atkinson, who was appointed by President Trump, is nothing but a delayed retaliatory action taken against an independent IG for his proper handling of a whistleblower complaint,” said Mark Zaidhttps: //t.co/RRAB2V3ufL

As noted by Yuri Rogulev, democrats and opponents of the head of the White House have repeatedly used the topic of abuse of office by the president to discredit Trump.

“Representatives of the Democratic Party will certainly talk about this, and opponents of the American leader and the press will try to use the fact of Atkinson’s dismissal in their interests,” the expert said.

However, according to Alexander Asafov, in a completely different agenda - the coronavirus pandemic - any objections of the Democrats will remain nothing more than words, since American society and politicians are focused on combating the spread of infection.

“No one will seriously react to this anyway now. The world agenda has changed so much that issues of impeachment and its consequences have faded into the background. Under such circumstances, Trump can make any personnel changes, ”the analyst concluded.