Trump special counsel pick withdraws over ‘Nazi streak’ comments
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Lawyer Paul Ingrassia, picked to head the Office of Special Counsel, faced mounting criticism from both Democrats and Republicans after media reports this week revealed text messages with racist content.
PHOTO: DOUG MILLS/NYTIMES
Follow topic:
WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead a government watchdog agency, Mr Paul Ingrassia, announced on Oct 21 that he was withdrawing his candidacy after it was revealed he reportedly boasted about having a “Nazi streak”.
Mr Ingrassia, a 30-year-old lawyer whom Mr Trump picked to head the Office of Special Counsel, was facing mounting criticism from both Democrats and Republicans after media reports this week revealed text messages with racist content.
“I will be withdrawing myself from Thursday’s HSGAC (Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee) hearing to lead the Office of Special Counsel because, unfortunately, I do not have enough Republican votes at this time,” Mr Ingrassia said in a post on social media platform X.
He was to appear on Oct 23 for confirmation hearings before the Senate, which is controlled by the Republicans with a narrow majority.
His nomination became embroiled in controversy after it was revealed that he told some fellow Republicans in a text chain that he had a “Nazi streak” and advocated for the Martin Luther King Jr national holiday to be scrapped.
“MLK Jr was the 1960s George Floyd and his ‘holiday’ should be ended and tossed into the seventh circle of hell where it belongs,” Mr Ingrassia allegedly wrote in the January 2024 chat, according to online news site Politico.
Without confirming the authenticity of the text messages, Mr Ingrassia’s lawyer, Mr Andrew Paltzik, told Politico the text messages were “taken out of context” and imbued with “self-mockery and satirical humour”.
The Office of Special Counsel is an independent agency tasked with protecting the rights of federal workers and shielding federal government whistle-blowers from retaliation.
Mr Ingrassia is the latest of the Republican President’s nominees to withdraw his name from consideration.
In September, the White House withdrew its nominee to lead the Bureau of Statistics, Mr E.J. Antoni, after Mr Trump fired the previous commissioner
Following the nomination of Mr Antoni, a right-wing economist who worked for conservative think-tank Heritage Foundation, media reports revealed that he had a history of posting “incendiary rhetoric” on social media, including conspiracy theories and misogynistic posts, according to CNN. AFP
