Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos is no stranger to being in the crossfire of Democrats. Typically, it’s because of her views or a controversial statement she said. But today, the conflict is a little more serious. Democrats are now claiming that DeVos is attempting to kill an investigation into her department.
House and Senate Democrats have cried foul over Betsy DeVos attempt to replace the acting inspector general Sandra Bruce. Bruce was heading an independent investigation into DeVos’s decision to reinstate the accreditor ACICS. The accreditor was stripped of their certification by the previous administration.
Removing people from their positions is certainly not unheard of and actually fairly commonplace in the Trump administration, but critics claim the attempt to oust Bruce from her position was “preceded by demands” that Bruce “drop an investigation” in regard to DeVos.
House Education and Labor Committee Chairman Bobby Scott, D-Va has led the charge in questioning the department’s decisions.
“We have now received correspondence between the Department and the (Office of Inspector General) that reveals troubling efforts by the Department to influence the ACICS investigation,” wrote Scott.
On their end, the Department of Education is denying any wrongdoing.
The Department of Education spokeswoman, Liz Hill, says “these claims are simply untrue and don’t match the actual sequence of events.” She also claimed the department would never “undermine” the independence of an investigator.
The Trump administration as a whole has come under scrutiny for their hiring and firing decisions. This certainly won’t help them shake that perception.