Fired State Department watchdog was 'investigating Trump’s emergency arms sale to Saudi Arabia'

Donald Trump 'declared emergency over tension with Iran to sell $8bn of weapons'

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo supported the Saudi arms deal. AFP

Sacked US State Department inspector general Steve Linick was investigating President Donald Trump’s declaration of an emergency that allowed him to hasten a major arms deal to Saudi Arabia, a leading Congressman said.

Congressman Eliot Engel, chairman of the House foreign affairs committee, said on Monday that the firing might have been caused by several investigations Mr Linick was pursuing, which involved US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

"I have learnt that there may be another reason for Mr Linick's firing," Mr Engel said.

"His office was investigating, at my request, Trump’s phony declaration of an emergency so he could send weapons to Saudi Arabia.

"It is troubling that Secretary Pompeo wanted Mr Linick pushed out before this work could be completed," Mr Engel told The Washington Post:

Democrats in Congress are investigating Mr Linick's firing.

On May 2019, Mr Trump declared an emergency because of tension with Iran, and used it to sell $8 billion (Dh29.39bn) of arms to Saudi Arabia, despite Congressional objections.

"These sales will support our allies, enhance Middle East stability,” Mr Pompeo said at the time.

Congress was enforcing a pause on weapons sales in the spring of 2019 because of the war in Yemen.

After the sale, Mr Engel requested an investigation by the State Department inspector general to determine the legality of Mr Trump’s emergency declaration, the congressman said on Monday.

Traditionally, Congress is granted 30 days to assess the any foreign arms sale, but Mr Trump’s declaration hastened the process.

Eliot Engel, chairman of the committee on foreign affairs, said he had asked for an investigation into arms sales to Saudi Arabia. AFP

Politico reported on Monday that Mr Linick, who was fired on Friday, had almost finished his investigation and that Congress was briefed of the conclusions.

But the news site said Mr Pompeo “refused to sit for an interview with the inspector general’s office".

Other reports indicated Mr Linick was also investigating Mr Pompeo’s alleged abuse of office by assigning a State Department staffer to run his personal errands, including walking his dog and picking up dry cleaning.

Mr Pompeo defended the firing of Mr Linick to the Post on Monday.
He "wasn't performing a function in a way that we had tried to get him to" and was "trying to undermine what it was that we were trying to do," he reportedly said.

State Department officials were not immediately available for comment to The National.