Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., chairman of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, last week came to the aid of Susan Gaffney, inspector general at the Housing and Urban Development Department, in her ongoing feud with HUD Secretary Andrew Cuomo.
Thompson says HUD violated contracting rules by bringing in outside lawyers at a cost of $300,000 to investigate charges of discrimination against Gaffney. Such investigations would normally be conducted internally at a cost of about $3,000, the General Accounting Office concluded in an investigation ordered by Thompson.
"There has clearly been an extraordinary effort to discredit this long-time public servant and to portray her as something she is not," Thompson said. "It is the job of this committee to see that IGs are allowed to do their job. We intend to do so."
GAO questioned the involvement of high-level HUD officials in the selection of outside lawyers to investigate charges that Gaffney's office discriminated against Philip X. Newsome, the deputy assistant IG for investigation. Newsome complained about Gaffney's selection of a white male for the position of assistant IG for investigations and about not receiving a Senior Executive Service performance-based bonus. Such an investigation would normally be handled through standard government EEO complaint procedures.
Thompson said HUD officials brought in the outside lawyers because they were more likely to find Gaffney guilty of discrimination.
HUD officials dispute GAO's findings and Thompson's assertions, saying the investigation cost only $100,000 and that the department was trying to take the discrimination charge very seriously.
HUD officials have been feuding for years with Gaffney, who has issued numerous critiques of reforms at the agency trumpeted by Cuomo. In a sign of the hostility, GAO reported that "HUD officials requested that we interview a group of OIG employees who, the officials said, had complained about the OIG's racial climate. However, when we asked to do so, we were informed that the individuals wished to remain anonymous."
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