June 15, 2009
Fired for doing his job: Walpin speaks
Gerald Walpin, a former Inspector General with the Corporation for National and Community Service which oversees AmeriCorps said in an interview with Byron York of The Examiner that his firing was politically motivated.
Yes, we knew that. We knew that Walpin's investigation into the misuse of AmeriCorps funds by Sacramento Mayor Dennis Johnson was the proximate cause of his firing. What we didn't know, as York points out, was how blatant it was:
The White House's decision to fire AmeriCorps inspector general Gerald Walpin came amid politically-charged tensions inside the Corporation for National and Community Service, the organization that runs AmeriCorps. Top executives at the Corporation, Walpin explained in an hour-long interview Saturday, were unhappy with his investigation into the misuse of AmeriCorps funds by Kevin Johnson, the former NBA star who is now mayor of Sacramento, California and a prominent supporter of President Obama. Walpin's investigation also sparked conflict with the acting U.S. attorney in Sacramento amid fears that the probe -- which could have resulted in Johnson being barred from ever winning another federal grant -- might stand in the way of the city receiving its part of billions of dollars in federal stimulus money. After weeks of standoff, Walpin, whose position as inspector general is supposed to be protected from influence by political appointees and the White House, was fired.
Walpin learned his fate Wednesday night. He was driving to an event in upstate New York when he received a call from Norman Eisen, the Special Counsel to the President for Ethics and Government Reform. "He said, 'Mr. Walpin, the president wants me to tell you that he really appreciates your service, but it's time to move on,'" Walpin recalls. "Eisen said, 'You can either resign, or I'll tell you that we'll have to terminate you.'"
Walpin had also just finished a report on the misuse of stim funds by the City University of New York. The two reports taken together would have placed Obama cronies in the sights of a criminal investigation. Hence, we can certainly agree that the timing of his firing was "very interesting" as Walpin put it.
Johnson was suspended from receiving any more Americorps dollars last year and the fact that millions more in stim money would be barred from coming his way as a result of Walpin's investigation didn't sit well with the White House.
If they had used Chicago rules, Walpin would have been fortunate he didn't have a couple of thugs pay a visit to his house, urging him to resign. As it is, they let some White House flunkie deliver the bad news. Walprin had little choice.
Where does this go from here? No, seriously, will some MSM outlet pick up on this and flog it like they would have flogged it if it were a Republican?
It's a juicy story. And we've only scratched the tip of it.
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