Republican Senator Susan Collins Not Happy About Trump Firing The Inspector General, Citing his removal was ‘unwarranted’

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, is breaking with President TrumpDonald John TrumpCampaigns face attack ad dilemma amid coronavirus crisis Outgoing inspector general says Trump fired him for carrying out his 'legal obligations' Trump hits Illinois governor after criticism: 'I hear him complaining all the time' MORE'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 th... (Read more)

Latest News