Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Rep. Jim Banks (R-Indiana) are objecting to the explanation provided by a Pentagon watchdog as to why it ended a review of alleged misconduct by Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS).
The republicans wrote a recent letter to the Department of Defense (DOD) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) to address a May correspondence in which DOD IG Robert Storch failed to provide any details to explain his decision to halt a review of Milley’s actions.
Your letter concludes that ‘further inquiry’ into CJCS Milley ‘is not warranted’ but offers no supporting evidence to back up that conclusion, calling into question your office’s commitment to its mission of transparency….We cannot just accept your final determination at face value without any understanding or knowledge of the evidence that led you there. An IG should never attempt to withhold information developed during an inquiry triggered by congressional request, especially when said investigation concerns the alleged misconduct of the nation’s top military officer…You and OIG staff have a responsibility to walk us through the review that was conducted at our request and to provide answers to our questions. Our offices should be given an opportunity to examine those findings. If you refuse to give us that opportunity, then we will request permission to review the relevant OIG files ourselves.
Sen. Chuck Grassley and Rep. Jim Banks
Background information provided by Sen. Grassley’s office:
General Mark Milley – who, per the Constitution, does not have command authorities as JCS chairman – reportedly ordered senior officers to check with him before executing orders from then-President Trump, the commander-in-chief.
Milley has also made partisan statements to the press, admissions in the book Peril and derogatory comments about Trump, including those in his now-public draft resignation.
In August 2022, Grassley and Banks sought an inspector general review of Milley’s actions. After nearly nine months, the OIG claimed to have conducted a thorough review, but offered no material or details to support its finding to halt its investigation.
Grassley and Banks first wrote Milley in April 2022 with the thorough background and pointed questions they provided the OIG in their August letter.
After months without answer, Grassley and Banks delivered remarks on their respective chamber floors calling on Milley to respond.
The full text of the latest letter from Sen. Grassley and Rep. Banks is available here and below:
June 7, 2023
We have completed a review of your May 3, 2023 response to the Grassley- Banks letter of August 17, 2022 concerning Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) Milley’s actions as reported in several books.
We find your response deeply unsatisfactory and not in keeping with the spirit and intent of the Inspector General Act of 1978. Your letter concludes that “further inquiry” into CJCS Milley “is not warranted” but offers no supporting evidence to back up that conclusion, calling into question your office’s commitment to its mission of transparency.
Your letter clearly indicates that the Department of Defense’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) conducted an extensive review of issues raised in our August 17 letter. However, OIG did not provide any of its findings in its letter to our offices or in any other report. Your letter completely bypasses the details revealed by OIG’s investigation and leaps to a determination without answering a single one of our questions or offering one shred of evidence.
We cannot just accept your final determination at face value without any understanding or knowledge of the evidence that led you there. An IG should never attempt to withhold information developed during an inquiry triggered by congressional request, especially when said investigation concerns the alleged misconduct of the nation’s top military officer.
Please produce all relevant evidence supporting your conclusion that further investigation is unwarranted to our offices without further delay.
You and OIG staff have a responsibility to walk us through the review that was conducted at our request and to provide answers to our questions. Our offices should be given an opportunity to examine those findings. If you refuse to give us that opportunity, then we will request permission to review the relevant OIG files ourselves.
We look forward to your response.
Respectfully,
Charles E. Grassley
United States Senator
Jim Banks
Member of Congress
Visit The Sharyl Attkisson Store today
Unique gifts for independent thinkers
Proceeds benefit independent journalism
