US President Mike Pompeo has suspended the Inspector General of the State Department. He is accused of political bias. State Department Inspector General Steve Linick was appointed during the Obama administration.
On Friday, Mike Pompeo fired Steve Linick for no reason, a senior department official said. Steve Linick had been serving in the department since 2013. Steve Linick was the General Inspector in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and his office supervises the staff working in the department. Several reports were issued on behalf of his office regarding the staff appointed by the Trump administration. Some allegations were made about career officers. After this Pompeo has fired Steve without giving any reason.
Stephen Akard will now be appointed to the position in place of Steve Linick. Linick will replace Stephen Akard, a former career Foreign Service officer who has close ties with Vice President Mike Pence, an official said on condition of anonymity.
Currently, Akard runs the Department’s Foreign Mission Office. He was also nominated as the Director-General of the Foreign Service earlier but was not given this position due to lack of sufficient experience.
