Trump nominee to lead whistleblower office drops out after racist texts surface | US politics

Paul Ingrassia, Donald Trump’s nominee charged with overseeing federal whistleblower protections, resigned this week after racist text messages he sent were revealed.

Ingrassia, who is now the White House liaison at the Department of Homeland Security, was the subject of a report Monday Published on Politico. The report said he described himself as having a “Nazi line” and that Martin Luther King Jr. The text messages allegedly included Day suggesting he should be “thrown into the seventh circle of hell.”

Ingrassia in a post published on Truth Social on Tuesday evening. in question: “I will be stepping down from Thursday’s HSGAC hearing to lead the Office of Special Counsel because unfortunately I do not have enough Republican votes at this time.

“I appreciate the tremendous support I have received throughout this process and will continue to serve President Trump and this administration to Make America Great Again!”

After the alleged text messages were released earlier this week, reporters asked Senate Majority Leader John Thune whether the administration should withdraw Ingrassia’s nomination to head the special counsel’s office. Thune said Monday: “I think so. It’s not going to go away.”

Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson also said Tuesday before Ingrassia’s withdrawal that he would not support Ingrassia’s nomination: “I say no. It should never have gone this far. They should withdraw the nomination.”

As of Tuesday afternoon, at least five Senate Republicans said: Washington Post He said they opposed Ingrassia’s candidacy. If his nomination had come to a vote, Ingrassia would have lost three Republican votes on the homeland security committee, which Republicans control by a single seat. Democrats were expected to vote unanimously against confirmation.

Edward Paltzik, a 30-year-old lawyer, questioned the authenticity of the messages sent to Politico and suggested they may have been created by artificial intelligence. He said they were “self-deprecating” and “satirical humor”, adding that his client is “the furthest thing from a Nazi”.

Prior to the publication of the alleged texts, Ingrassia found himself in hot water after a separate incident. Policy report As of earlier this month, it was revealed that he was being investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, where he worked as a liaison to the White House. The investigation was launched after a female colleague canceled her hotel reservation before a business trip and told him they would share a room. Politico noted that the woman filed a complaint against Ingrassia and later withdrew it. Ingrassia has denied any wrongdoing.

Trump’s nomination of Ingrassia was announced in June and would see the agency protect federal employees from prohibited personnel practices, such as retaliation for tip-offs carried out by a relative novice.

Historically, the agency has been led by nonpartisan attorneys with decades of experience. Ingrassia was admitted to the New York bar last year.

Joseph Gedeon contributed reporting