6 ms·

USDA inspector general escorted out of her office after defying White House

58 points by nico 2y ago

jacobn 2y ago
> After this article was published, a USDA spokesperson said Fong left the office Monday on her own accord. > "She was accompanied by two friends who she paused to take selfies with on her way out. Security officials did not play any role in her departure,” the spokesperson said.
- juujian 2y ago
  Is that a Ministry of Truth official or a credible spokesperson?
- 3eb7988a1663 2y ago
  Given the preceding quote that she did not believe the terminations were lawful, that would be a complete reversal of her decision from days prior. Phyllis Fong, a 22-year veteran of the department, had earlier told colleagues that she intended to stay after the White House terminated her Friday, saying that she didn’t believe the administration had followed proper protocols, the sources said. In an email to colleagues on Saturday, reviewed by Reuters, she said the independent Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency “has taken the position that these termination notices do not comply with the requirements set out in law and therefore are not effective at this time.” Fong declined to comment and the Office of the Inspector General did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
- andrewinardeer 2y ago
  So the headline is flat out incorrect?
fzeroracer 2y ago
> The White House defended the firing of Fong and the other inspectors general, saying "these rogue, partisan bureaucrats... have been relieved of their duties in order to make room for qualified individuals who will uphold the rule of law and protect Democracy." Grim tidings when combined with Elon's cronies taking over payment systems and the incoming trade war.
- BadCookie 2y ago
  I have wondered why there is so little discussion of these things on HN compared to other social media.
  - lylejantzi3rd 2y ago
    You're kidding me, right? It seems like every other post on the front page is a discussion of this topic and nothing else. It's getting old.
    - Supermancho 2y ago
      You can look right now. This story + a related one at the bottom of 3rd page. Not sure where you get that sentiment from. Maybe under submissions?
    - BadCookie 2y ago
      No? I see under 10% of the HN front page stories being related to U.S. national politics at the moment, which feels very low compared to Reddit and Facebook for me (which are well over 50%, but I realize that each person sees something different potentially).
  - jfengel 2y ago
    Half of HN thinks this is precisely what's needed. The other half would like to talk about it, but it's flagged as being irrelevant politics.
    - freitasm 2y ago
      Truth. I follow the RSS and there are so many flagged or dead posts that never make the front page. There seems to be a hard right turn in the tech circles.
      - jfengel 2y ago
        Yeah. It's been going on since the dotcom boom. I watched Slashdot become increasingly right wing for a decade. When I finally gave up on it, it was practically Stormfront.
ChrisArchitect 2y ago
[dupe] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42902355 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42902355 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42902678 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42902678
freitasm 2y ago
And it's flagged.

58 points by nico 2y ago

> After this article was published, a USDA spokesperson said Fong left the office Monday on her own accord. > "She was accompanied by two friends who she paused to take selfies with on her way out. Security officials did not play any role in her departure,” the spokesperson said.

juujian 2y ago
Is that a Ministry of Truth official or a credible spokesperson?
3eb7988a1663 2y ago
Given the preceding quote that she did not believe the terminations were lawful, that would be a complete reversal of her decision from days prior. Phyllis Fong, a 22-year veteran of the department, had earlier told colleagues that she intended to stay after the White House terminated her Friday, saying that she didn’t believe the administration had followed proper protocols, the sources said. In an email to colleagues on Saturday, reviewed by Reuters, she said the independent Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency “has taken the position that these termination notices do not comply with the requirements set out in law and therefore are not effective at this time.” Fong declined to comment and the Office of the Inspector General did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
andrewinardeer 2y ago
So the headline is flat out incorrect?

fzeroracer 2y ago

> The White House defended the firing of Fong and the other inspectors general, saying "these rogue, partisan bureaucrats... have been relieved of their duties in order to make room for qualified individuals who will uphold the rule of law and protect Democracy." Grim tidings when combined with Elon's cronies taking over payment systems and the incoming trade war.

BadCookie 2y ago
I have wondered why there is so little discussion of these things on HN compared to other social media.
- lylejantzi3rd 2y ago
  You're kidding me, right? It seems like every other post on the front page is a discussion of this topic and nothing else. It's getting old.
  - Supermancho 2y ago
    You can look right now. This story + a related one at the bottom of 3rd page. Not sure where you get that sentiment from. Maybe under submissions?
  - BadCookie 2y ago
    No? I see under 10% of the HN front page stories being related to U.S. national politics at the moment, which feels very low compared to Reddit and Facebook for me (which are well over 50%, but I realize that each person sees something different potentially).
- jfengel 2y ago
  Half of HN thinks this is precisely what's needed. The other half would like to talk about it, but it's flagged as being irrelevant politics.
  - freitasm 2y ago
    Truth. I follow the RSS and there are so many flagged or dead posts that never make the front page. There seems to be a hard right turn in the tech circles.
    - jfengel 2y ago
      Yeah. It's been going on since the dotcom boom. I watched Slashdot become increasingly right wing for a decade. When I finally gave up on it, it was practically Stormfront.

ChrisArchitect 2y ago

[dupe] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42902355 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42902355 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42902678 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42902678

freitasm 2y ago

And it's flagged.