Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Trump foreign policy advisor was booted from Pentagon for blocking probes of Bush White House
Joseph E. Schmitz, named by Donald Trump as a key foreign policy adviser on Monday, was forced out of his job as the Pentagon’s top watchdog a decade ago amid accusations that he protected top officials in the George W. Bush administration suspected of wrongdoing.
Trump, the Republican front-runner, named Schmitz as one of his five top foreign policy advisers during an editorial meeting at The Washington Post on Monday morning. The group will be chaired by Republican Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama.
Schmitz’s rocky three and a half year tenure as the Defense Department’s inspector general ended in 2005 amid a barrage of attacks questioning his leadership, mostly notably from Senator Charles E. Grassley, the long serving Iowa Republican who has championed whistleblower rights at the Pentagon. Grassley, then-chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, accused Schmitz of blocking investigations of Bush administration officials tied to Iraq and Afghanistan war contracts and questioned his ties to lobbyists. Schmitz also drew scrutiny for naming as his chief of staff L. Jean Louis, a bank investigator who gained notoriety for raising accusations, later discredited, against Bill and Hillary Clinton during the Whitewater scandal.
“Schmitz slowed or blocked investigations of senior Bush administration officials, spent taxpayer money on pet projects and accepted gifts that may have violated ethics guidelines, according to interviews with current and former senior officials in the inspector general's office, congressional investigators and a review of internal e-mail and other documents,” The Los Angeles Times reported in 2005.
Trump, the Republican front-runner, named Schmitz as one of his five top foreign policy advisers during an editorial meeting at The Washington Post on Monday morning. The group will be chaired by Republican Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama.
Schmitz’s rocky three and a half year tenure as the Defense Department’s inspector general ended in 2005 amid a barrage of attacks questioning his leadership, mostly notably from Senator Charles E. Grassley, the long serving Iowa Republican who has championed whistleblower rights at the Pentagon. Grassley, then-chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, accused Schmitz of blocking investigations of Bush administration officials tied to Iraq and Afghanistan war contracts and questioned his ties to lobbyists. Schmitz also drew scrutiny for naming as his chief of staff L. Jean Louis, a bank investigator who gained notoriety for raising accusations, later discredited, against Bill and Hillary Clinton during the Whitewater scandal.
“Schmitz slowed or blocked investigations of senior Bush administration officials, spent taxpayer money on pet projects and accepted gifts that may have violated ethics guidelines, according to interviews with current and former senior officials in the inspector general's office, congressional investigators and a review of internal e-mail and other documents,” The Los Angeles Times reported in 2005.
Snip
http://www.rawstory.com/2016/03/revealed-trump-foreign-policy-advisor-was-booted-from-pentagon-for-blocking-probes-of-bush-white-house/
5 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
How come he wasn't fired? 
