Former IG Steve Linick participated in a remote interview on Wednesday.
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Fired State Department inspector general Steve Linick told lawmakers on Wednesday that his office was conducting two investigations related to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and that senior department officials were aware of the inquiries, according to Democratic lawmakers.
Over roughly seven hours of testimony, Linick told lawmakers that several senior aides to Pompeo, including Under Secretary of State for Management Brian Bulatao, were aware of the ongoing investigations into whether the secretary was using staff for personnel errands, and the use of emergency legal powers to sell weapons to Saudi Arabia over congressional objections.
"Mr. Linick testified that he was 'shocked' when he found out he was being fired, that his removal came without any warning from President Trump or Secretary Pompeo, and that the Administration's after-the-fact justifications are 'either misplaced or unfounded,'" Reps. Eliot Engel, D-NY, Carolyn Maloney, D-NY, Gerry Connolly, D-VA, Joaquin Castro, D-TX, and Sen. Bob Menendez, D-NJ, said in a statement.
Linick declined to discuss details of the ongoing investigations in his interview, according to sources who participated in the virtual interview. An attorney for Linick declined to comment on the session.
Republicans slammed Democrats for their plans to release the transcript of Linick's interview before hearing any testimony from the State Department as part of their investigation into the inspector general's removal. They also accused Linick of being more forthcoming in answering questions about his office's investigations from Democrats than from Republicans.
"Releasing Mr Linick's transcript without the benefit of hearing from the State Department would be the latest in a long line of irresponsible actions by Committee Democrats," a GOP House Oversight Committee spokesman told ABC News. "We hope the Democrats will take up Mr. Bulatao's generous offer to come brief them on all the events discussed in today's interview."
While Bulatao, a Pompeo confidant and West Point classmate, has agreed to brief lawmakers in their probe, Democrats have rejected the offer, and want to question him under oath.
Linick defended his record in an opening statement obtained by ABC News, and said he has "served without regard to politics" under presidents from both parties.
Linick told lawmakers his office issued more than 700 reports and saved taxpayers nearly $2 billion. Linick also invoked the late Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., a conservative fiscal watchdog who he said shared some advice with him when he became an inspector general.
"Sen. Coburn told me to never forget that ultimately inspectors general work for the American public. In keeping with that advice, every minute of my work... has been devoted to promoting the efficiency and effectiveness of both agencies, along with ensuring that taxpayer funds are protected against waste, fraud, and abuse," he said. "In carrying out my work, I have always taken the facts and evidence wherever they lead and have been faithfully committed to conducting independent and impartial oversight, as required by law."
Pompeo has said that he was personally unaware of any investigations into his actions when he recommended Linick's removal to President Donald Trump.
"This didn't have anything to do with retaliation," he told Fox News last week. "This was about an IG that was attempting to undermine the mission of the United States Department of State. That's unacceptable."
Linick told lawmakers that he discussed the investigation into alleged misuse of department resources with top agency officials so that department leadership "would not be surprised," Democrats said in their readout of the session.
While Democrats said Linick believed he had heard no "valid" reasons for his dismissal, Republicans have defended his removal and argued that he served at the president's pleasure.
Democrats are also seeking interviews with at least seven State Department employees who say they may have knowledge of the watchdog's ongoing investigations.
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