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PODCAST

Trump’s Illegal Late-Night Purge Suddenly Becomes a Bigger Scandal

As Trump offers an absurd defense of his purge of inspectors general that makes it look more corrupt, commentator Jennifer Rubin explains why it’s illegal and will abet more corruption—and suggests ways to fight back.

Donald Trump in the Oval Office
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

On Friday night, President Donald Trump fired 15 independent inspectors general in a late-night massacre that was very likely illegal. Yet since then, that story has only become a bigger scandal. First, Trump offered a weak defense of the purge that made it crystal clear that he doesn’t have a genuine rationale for the removals, as the law appears to require. Second, some Republicans quickly signaled that they will be just fine with this, confirming again that the GOP will aid and abet his escalating corruption. We chatted with Jennifer Rubin, co-founder of The Contrarian, who explains why the move is illegal and poses a profound threat to good governance, how Trump’s absurd defense of it compounds the problem, and how Democrats and others can fight back. Listen to this episode here. A transcript is here.