MSNBC Discovers Oversight Matters, But Only for Republicans
Funny how this concern for transparency only seems to hit the mainstream airwaves when the alleged transgressor wears a 'R' next to their name. While the MSNBC report (MSNBC, 2022) rightly flags Trump's undermining of IGs, it conveniently glosses over similar patterns in previous administrations. Where was this impassioned scrutiny when the Obama White House fired IG Walpin for investigating
Americorps (The Atlantic, 2009)? Or the countless times administrations, both red and blue, have used 'executive privilege' to stonewall legitimate investigations? (New York Times, 2007, on Bush/Gonzales; ProPublica, 2011, on Fast and Furious). It's almost as if the concept of 'systemic importance' only applies when it aligns with the preferred partisan narrative. One might wonder if the White
House's 'systemic campaign' against independent oversight truly matters, or if the outrage is just another convenient performance for the cameras, switching on and off with the occupying party.