Sen. Cruz to Hold All State Dept. Nominees Until President Nominates Inspector General

Statement

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) today released the following statement regarding President Obama's failure to nominate an Inspector General (IG) for the U.S. Department of State. IGs are congressionally mandated officers who provide independent agency oversight.

The President's failure to nominate a State Department Inspector General since taking office in 2009 is unacceptable. The position has been vacant for almost 2,000 days. This is a crucial oversight position and should be a priority for an agency facing substantial management challenges.

While several federal agencies are operating without a Senate-confirmed Inspector General, only the State Department has been without a credible and independent Inspector General for so long.

During the last five years, there have been deadly attacks on U.S. diplomatic personnel in Libya, mismanagement of security contractors at our embassy in Afghanistan, and hundreds of millions of U.S. taxpayer dollars wasted for police training in Iraq. These issues highlight the State Department's need for an Inspector General as soon as possible.

Until the President acts, I have notified Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell that I will place a hold on all State Department nominations.

According to the Project on Government Oversight, the following other federal agencies are currently without a Senate-confirmed Inspector General:

Agency Who Nominates

Days Vacant

Vacancy Date

Department of the Interior President
1,583 Days
02/23/2009

Department of Labor President
1,443 Days
07/13/2009

Agency for International Development President
619 Days
10/15/2011

Source: http://www.pogo.org/tools-and-data/ig-watchdogs/go-igi-20120208-where-are-all-the-watchdogs-inspector-general-vacancies1.html

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