Republicans apparently only care about laws being violated when there's a Democrat in charge. Fox News Sunday host Shannon Bream asked Sen. Tom Cotton about the firings of the Inspectors General, which, as we discussed here, violates federal law, and the fact that some Republicans supposedly have "concerns" about what Trump did. Bream, of course, left out the fact that most of them were appointed during Trump's first term.
BREAM: I want to ask you about the reporting there that Lucas had about the firing of these Inspectors General.
I've talked to, I've heard of some from some of your GOP colleagues who are concerned about this, saying it didn't give the proper notification, even if ultimately it would be, the notice wasn't there and is President Trump signaling he's just going to, you know, observe which laws he wants to and not others.
COTTON: Shannon, time and time again the Supreme Court has said that Congress can't impose restrictions on the president's power to remove officers.
In president Trump's first term, he removed the director of the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau despite limitations on the president's constitutional power to remove officers. That was litigated at the Supreme Court and the president won.
So ultimately these Inspectors General serve at the pleasure pleasure of the president. He wants new people in there.
He wants people who focused on getting out waste and fraud and abuse and reforming these agencies. He has a right to to get in there who he wants.
BREAM: Do you think he will? That's the next question because there have been times when those Inspector General slots have been left open by various presidents.
Are you confident... because they're your eyes and ears as lawmakers that they will be filled?
COTTON: I believe so, and he says he wants to fill those offices.
Maybe he won't fill them immediately because there's an entire administration staff and they have other priorities, but I think the president's inherent power to remove officers will be upheld if it's challenged in court, as it has been time and again for Democratic and Republican presidents alike.
If he fills them, it will be with corrupt cronies who won't do their jobs. Bream failed to ask Cotton about something else as well.
In fact, Senator Cotton voted *for* the 2022 amendment that created the 30-day notice requirement:
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