The Project On Government Oversight (POGO) Blog

Lurita Doan's 'New Groove'

Last May, POGO blogged about the firing of controversial General Services Administration chief Lurita Doan.  At the end of that post, we asserted that she wouldn't be gone for long.  Sure enough, this week brought news of a new high-profile gig for Doan: radio commentator with Federal News Radio WFED 1050 AM.

The news that Doan will broadcast a weekly 15-minute spot called "Leadership Matters" prompted a story in Federal Times that jokingly compared her to "shock jock" Howard Stern.

"I had a great time at the GSA," Doan told Federal Times.  "Now I've moved on.  This is my new groove."

Doan's radio segment will feature her views on the subject of government leadership.  Given her scandal-plagued tenure as GSA administrator, those views should certainly be quite interesting.  She promises that no topic, not even her well-known hostility toward inspectors general, will be off-limits.  (We wonder what, if anything, Doan will have to say about the forthcoming part two of POGO's investigation of IGs, which will address issues of IG accountability, performance and effectiveness.)

Doan explains her philosophy regarding government leadership in this op-ed column on the WFED web site:

[L]eadership matters. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Certainly, teams, committees and working groups are important--especially in a federal government as large as ours.

But, you can immediately recognize an organization, a plan, an idea that has a true leader at the helm because true leadership requires action.  And, action is a verb; action is movement; action means that things get done, even when the movement and the action makes people uncomfortable--because oftentimes status quo is the comfy armchair we like to sit in.

Leadership asks the question, "Why not?"

She had better warn her listeners not to ask the question, "How can we help our candidates?" at office meetings, or else they too will be smacked with a violation of the Hatch Act.

Given Doan's background as a successful government contractor and deep-pocketed Republican donor, we were somewhat surprised by this career change.  Some of her former GSA colleagues, however, were not.  One unnamed former colleague provided this zinger to Federal Times: "It's the perfect medium for Lurita; she's a great storyteller."

-- Neil Gordon

The Other Political Firings

While whistleblowers at the Department of Justice have been validated, the outcome of an investigation into politically-motivated firings at the U.S. Office of Special Counsel continues to remain secret.  Today, our attorney at the firm of Katz, Marshall and Banks wrote to White House Counsel Fred Fielding urging the Office of Personnel Management IG to release the findings of an investigation that was launched more than three years ago, after a complaint was filed by anonymous employees at OSC along with POGO and other concerned groups.  That investigation recently led to an FBI raid involving two dozen agents of Special Counsel Scott Bloch's home, office and person.

-- Beth Daley

Blackwater? More Like Murky Water

According to the Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Inspector General, Blackwater may have improperly received numerous contracts set aside for small businesses.  In a July 25th memorandum, the Inspector General raised concerns that the SBA did not adequately address several ambiguities and discrepancies that could have disqualified Blackwater from receiving small business contracts.

Although media reports frequently discuss Blackwater, the meaning of the name is complicated.  "Blackwater" in its common usage describes several affiliated companies that operate under the umbrella business name of "Blackwater Worldwide."  Many of these affiliates do not have "Blackwater" anywhere in their name, and many of the Blackwater contracts in question were awarded to the affiliate company Presidential Airways.  To add to the confusion surrounding Blackwater's name, "Blackwater Worldwide" was, until recently, "Blackwater USA."

A recent exchange of letters between POGO and Blackwater provides an excellent example of just how complicated the naming issue is.  POGO sent a letter addressed to "Blackwater USA" and received a reply from the General Counsel of "Blackwater Lodge and Training Center," who used "Blackwater Worldwide" stationery and referred to www.blackwaterusa.com.  According to this letter, "Blackwater USA" is a "fictitious business name."

Just knowing what companies constitute "Blackwater" is difficult; however, the SBA's decision to consider Presidential Airways a small business was equally perplexing.  In making a size determination for any Blackwater company, the SBA had to consider the cumulative revenue and employment of all Blackwater affiliates.  Whether or not the SBA should have determined that Presidential was a small business largely depends on whether approximately 1,000 security personnel Blackwater provided to the Department of State and other government agencies should have been categorized as independent contractors or employees.

The SBA originally treated these personnel as contractors and consequently ruled that Blackwater had fewer than the upper limit of 1,500 employees for a small business.  The Inspector General did not endorse this assessment, writing that "the SBA size determination did not, in our opinion, present a clear explanation for why the Agency concluded that the security personnel performing the [Department of State] contract were independent contractors."

The Inspector General questioned other aspects of the SBA's decision as well, including its neglecting to explain major discrepancies between the number of Blackwater employees reported by Presidential Airways and the number stated by Dun & Bradstreet, a firm that provides commercial information.  The SBA also did not consider that Blackwater security personnel were treated as employees for the purposes of the Defense Base Act.

Blackwater's troubles with investigations are far from over.  The SBA IG has referred the matter to the Inspectors General of the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs, which awarded the small business contracts to Blackwater.  In addition, the review was only one of several requested by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, who also asked for investigations into whether Blackwater has violated tax and labor laws.  In the meantime, Blackwater appears to have tired of intense media scrutiny and is planning to scale back its often criticized security operations.

-- John Cappel

McCaskill Provision Included in CPSC Bill - 20 Million Employees Get Whistleblower Rights

House and Senate conferees agreed to adopt language put forward by Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) to provide whistleblower protections for private sector workers who see violations of consumer protection laws.  The language is included in the Consumer Product Safety Legislation, which is currently in conference.  According to Government Accountability Project (GAP), 20 million workers will get the protections.  This follows on another victory last year to create whistleblower protections for defense contractors.  A coalition led by the National Association of Manufacturers made the whistleblower protection provision one of six top provisions that they were fighting.

According to Senator McCaskill's press release announcing the win:

During Senate consideration of the whistleblower protections, the Administration stated its strong opposition to whistleblower protections, saying they will cause a serious increase in the number of frivolous claims.  However, the language does not protect disgruntled employees making false claims and does not prevent firing a whistleblower for other, unrelated reasons, such as poor performance.  The President has not indicated whether he would veto the CPSC reauthorization bill because of the whistleblower protections included.

Congress extended similar whistleblower protections to employees of defense contractors when it enacted a McCaskill provision as part of the Defense Authorization Act of 2008, and the same protections have been enacted for private employees in many other industries, including the airline industry and publically-traded corporations.

Although this is a major victory, Tom Devine at GAP noted today that federal employees still do not have the same kind of viable whistleblower protections that have been extended to scores of workers in the private sector, and that the legislation to fix that "has been bogged down for seven months."

Meanwhile, many federal employee whistleblowers are paying the price.

-- Beth Daley

Bloch Takes Call for His Resignation "Under Advisement"

Dan Friedman at the National Journal reports today that U.S. Special Counsel Scott Bloch responded yesterday to a letter from House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) calling for his resignation.  In the letter, Bloch writes:

I was appointed by the President and confirmed unanimously by the United States Senate for a five-year term. That term ends on January 5, 2009. As you may already be aware, the President very recently declined an invitation to dismiss me under OSC's authorizing statute, at least according to news accounts. I will note your concerns and will take them under advisement as I consider the remaining few months of my term.

A full copy of the letter is available here.

-- Beth Daley

Conflicted Consulting at MMS

The Department of Justice just announced that Jimmy Mayberry, former special assistant to the Associate Director of Minerals Revenue Management (MRM) at the Minerals Management Service (MMS), pleaded guilty to a felony violation of the conflict of interest law.  Mayberry faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine of $250,000, and supervised release following his incarceration.

In the press release, DOJ describes how Mayberry worked with his supervisor--who POGO has confirmed is retired Associate Director of MMS Lucy Dennett--to develop a consulting position for him following his retirement.  Although the position was required by law to be subject to a fair and open competitive bidding process: “Mayberry also admitted that in his official capacity before retiring, he created the 'statement of work' that would subsequently be used to define the position and evaluate the bids of Mayberry and his competitors.”  Surprisingly, Mayberry was the only applicant to receive an "excellent" rating on each qualification category.  It's also worth noting that Lucy Dennett retired February 1 of this year, while numerous investigations into misconduct and criminal activity were pending against the agency.

POGO has also learned that this kind of revolving door "post-retirement contract" is far from unusual at MMS, and that charges against other retirees are coming soon.

-- Mandy Smithberger

DCAA Fights Back

A senior auditor at the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) has written to Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO), challenging the recent GAO report which substantiated claims that DCAA management had pressured auditors to alter their reports on defense contractors.

McCaskill wrote to DCAA chief April Stephenson last week, demanding accountability and calling for congressional hearings to investigate the matter.

In his response, DCAA auditor Dan Hawkins takes serious issue with the GAO investigation, and requests that the GAO "withdraw the report and engage an independent organization to review [its] work."  Copies of the letter were also sent to Defense Secretary Gates, the GAO Acting Comptroller General, and POGO.

Click here to read the full letter.

-- Michael Smallberg

UPDATE: POGO has learned from inside sources that while this was a genuine letter written by a DCAA auditor, the name "Dan Hawkins" might actually be a nom de plume.  Thanks to our commenters for bringing this issue to our attention. 

"Are They Crazy Up There?!"

CQ's Jeff Stein has brought to our attention a great piece by David M. Barrett, who helps put the Air Force's recent troubles in some historical context.

When he read the Washington Post story on the Air Force "comfort capsules," Barrett was reminded of a similar episode that occurred during the Kennedy administration.  On July 25, 1963, the Post ran an article about officials at Otis Air Base in Cape Cod spending thousands of dollars to procure luxurious bedroom furniture from the Jordan Marsh Company so that a pregnant Jacqueline Kennedy could give birth on the base if she needed to.

Embarrassed and outraged, Kennedy placed calls to Robert McNamara's spokesman and his Air Force aide demanding answers.  Luckily, the tape recorder was rolling during both calls, because the president had some choice words to describe the Air Force officials who purchased the furniture ("...that silly bastard...are they crazy up there?!...I wouldn't have him running a cathouse!...").

Click here and here to listen for yourself.

-- Michael Smallberg

Cloudy Fishbowl

We are indebted to our friends at PEER for bringing to public attention a recent and disturbing email from a senior EPA official, Robbi Farrell, to 11 managers in her division, the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, or OECA.

It's one thing for an agency official to order all staff to deal with the press through appropriate channels.  As a former reporter, I don't particularly like that, but I grudgingly recognize the need, as agency chiefs often put it, of "speaking with one voice."

But when employees are told not to respond to questions from the Inspector General or the GAO, then we become concerned.  Those watchdogs are the only entities entrusted with genuine oversight of agency programs and operations, and they must have ready and open access to all agency information.  Further, when employees are ordered not to "respond to questions or make any statements" to IG or GAO investigators, they are receiving a strong signal not only about "one voice," but also about who's good and who's not, and an implicit warning about what happens if you don't fall in line.  As PEER executive director Jeff Ruch said in a statement, "The clear intention behind this move is to chill the cubicles by suppressing any uncontrolled information."

EPA public affairs hustled up an "explanation" for the email, but betrayed its real purpose by referring to it as a "gag order."  While blandly assuring that the email was establishing "standard operating procedures" to respond to requests more efficiently, the statement writer's nose started growing with the claims that (1) the procedure was developed in response to a year-old OIG report; and (2) "the IG reviewed OECA's procedures and signed off on them."

First of all, the May 2007 IG report was about EPA procedures to follow up on IG audit reports and recommendations.  The report recommended better ways for agency offices to "monitor the audit follow-up process and ensure that timely and appropriate corrective actions are taking place."  The report had nothing whatsoever to say about how OECA employees should interact with or respond to questions from the IG or the GAO.

Second, the Office of the IG absolutely denies that it had either "reviewed" or "signed off" on the new procedures.  The IG statement provided to POGO says:

"The OIG did not approve this specific language.  We only agreed to those corrective actions OECA said it would take in response to the recommendations in our May 2007 report.  All EPA officials and employees are required to cooperate with the OIG.  This cooperation includes providing the OIG full and unrestricted access to EPA documents, records, and personnel.  We are currently engaged in discussions with OECA to assure that OIG and OECA interpretations are consistent in this matter."

The EPA has of course been much in the news in recent months...or years...and perhaps there's a certain sensitivity to bad publicity on the part of senior officials.  Perhaps somebody actually thought the best way to deal with bad news is to hide it.  But we at POGO and our friends at PEER can assure all federal employees that rotten fish cannot remain hidden for long.  The situation is a far cry from the days of EPA Administrator William Ruckelshaus, who promised that the agency would operate as an open "fishbowl" for all to see its every activity.

-- Beverley Lumpkin

Tough Times at the FDA

It's hard to open a newspaper these days without reading a story about risky drugs with deadly side effects or salmonella-contaminated food.  It's no surprise, then, that the FDA has come under a great deal of scrutiny of late.  But simply blaming the agency for all the recent food and drug scandals doesn't take into account other complicating factors that have weakened government oversight in recent years.

On Friday, the AP ran a story about the food industry lobby killing a plan that would have required them to "maintain electronic tracking records that could be reviewed easily during a crisis to search for an outbreak's source," because it would have been too costly.  Of course, the business losses from the current outbreak are estimated to be about $250 million.  As the AP wrote, the recent outbreak of food borne illness in the U.S. "is teaching the food industry the truth of the adage, 'Be careful what you wish for because you might get it.'"

Also, while the FDA tends to get a lot of negative press when something it was supposed to regulate goes wrong, the blame can only go so far.  After all, the agency is responsible for A LOT.  Here's the FDA's mission statement:

The FDA is responsible for protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, our nation's food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation. The FDA is also responsible for advancing the public health by helping to speed innovations that make medicines and foods more effective, safer, and more affordable; and helping the public get the accurate, science-based information they need to use medicines and foods to improve their health.

It's not only the responsibility of the FDA to ensure that everything you have ever put in your body is safe, effective, and innovative; they're supposed to educate you about it too.  That's quite the mission.  And while money doesn't guarantee effectiveness, one would expect that the FDA would be fully funded so that it could fulfill its mission.  But that's just not the case.

In February 2008, a panel of experts recommended that the FDA's budget be at least doubled by 2013.  Until those budget woes are effectively addressed, efforts to clean up the FDA's failures will result in resources being shifted to the scandal of the day, leaving the other FDA responsibilities vulnerable.

As POGO's Staff Scientist, Dr. Ned Feder, wrote in "Food and Drug Safety on the Cheap: It Can't Be Done," which was recently published in The Hill, without adequate FDA funding:

"...we should face the consequences squarely.  Incidents like those caused by salmonella, heparin, and Vioxx will happen again.  The FDA's perennial shortcomings will continue to claim human victims."

(Bonus: here's a video of FDA Commissioner, Andrew C. von Eschenbach, M.D., getting grilled about Heparin, the scandal that preceded the salmonella outbreak.  It's worth your time, trust me):

-- Jake Wiens

Breaking News: Sen. Ted Stevens Indicted

Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) has been indicted.  The Department of Justice is scheduled to announce the charges at 1:20 this afternoon.  POGO has called for Stevens's resignation in the past for profiting from his then-chairmanship of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

-- Mandy Smithberger

UPDATE 1: Stevens has been indicted for seven counts of falsely reporting hundreds of thousands of dollars in services he received from VECO, an oil services company in Alaska that helped renovate his home.  According to the AP, "The indictment released Tuesday said the items included: home improvements to his vacation [home] in Alaska, including a new first floor, garage, wraparound deck, plumbing, electrical wiring; as well as car exchanges, a Viking gas grill, furniture and tools."

UPDATE 2: Click here to watch a live feed of the Justice Department news conference.

UPDATE 3: Click here to read the full indictment.

More Shake-Up at the Air Force

The Associated Press reported this morning that two Air Force officials have resigned: William Anderson, the Air Force's logistics chief, and Kenneth Miller, involved in Air Force acquisitions and former assistant to the recently fired Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne.  Anderson's resignation letter cites "recent changes in Air Force leadership and the resulting constraints" as his reason for leaving.  These resignations follow several Air Force scandals covered by POGO.  In the last week alone:

• The Air Force admittedly “falling asleep” with nuclear weapons launch codes at the Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota--the fourth time the Air Force has mishandled its nukes over the past year;

• Former top Air Force acquisition official Darleen Druyun's connection to the DCAA suppression and changing of audit results; and

• The Air Force's plan to construct "comfort capsules" while the troops fly in mangled, rotten seats--a story originally reported by POGO and mocked by Stephen Colbert.

POGO thinks it's also worth noting that the Senate Armed Services Committee had two closed meetings on the pending Air Force nominations in the past week, and we understand that today's closed session will follow up on these meetings.

-- Mandy Smithberger

UPDATE: More bad news at the Air Force: it was reported today that Brig. Gen. Thomas Tinsley died on Sunday in an apparent suicide.