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Stay Tuned with Preet

CAFE Insider 4/7: The Oversight Wars

Stay Tuned with Preet

Vox Media Podcast Network

Society & Culture, Politics, Government, News

4.832.3K Ratings

🗓️ 8 April 2020

⏱️ 10 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

To listen to the full episode for free, head to cafe.com/preet and sign up to receive a link. Members of the CAFE Insider can listen to this episode in the podcast player of their choice. In this special episode of CAFE Insider, “The Oversight Wars,” Preet and Anne are joined by Neil Barofsky, who served as the Special Inspector General for TARP, the chief watchdog in charge of policing the 2008 Wall Street bailout. Drawing on Neil’s experience overseeing the last massive government stimulus package, Preet and Anne break down all the latest issues and developments, including: — The challenges inherent in the oversight system outlined in the stimulus law, and the incredible amount of power in the hands of Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin. — Trump’s decision to appoint Brian Miller, one of his own White House lawyers, to the position of Inspector General for Pandemic Relief, and the importance of having independent-minded, qualified lawyers in oversight roles. — The news that Trump has fired Michael Atkinson, the Inspector General for the Intelligence Community, ostensibly as payback for his role in bringing to light the whistleblower complaint that ultimately led to the President’s impeachment. Preet and Anne also break down the latest politically-charged legal news, including: — The disturbing new report from the DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz exposing widespread problems with the FISA warrant application process. — The legal battle over voting in Wisconsin, the Supreme Court’s last-minute decision mandating that they move forward with the election, and the implications for the upcoming November election. To hear the full episode, head to cafe.com/preet to receive a link. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Hey stay tuned listeners. I hope you and your loved ones are staying healthy and safe during

0:05.2

these extraordinarily difficult times. As many of you know Anne Milgram and I co-host

0:09.3

the Cafe Insider podcast where every Tuesday we break down politically charged legal issues

0:14.1

making the headlines. The podcast is part of the Cafe Insider membership and I'm so glad

0:18.7

that insiders are staying engaged, writing in with questions and comments. Thank you

0:22.5

as always for helping support our work. As we make sense of the ongoing coronavirus crisis,

0:28.1

we're taking down the paywall on the podcast so that everyone can listen and participate.

0:32.2

For part of this special episode, Anne and I are lucky to be joined by our friend Neil

0:35.6

Barovsky. During the last financial crisis, Neil served as the special inspector general

0:40.1

for the tarp stimulus bill, making him the chief watchdog in charge of policing the implementation

0:44.8

of the 2008 bank bailout. Neil joins us to break down the oversight mechanisms in the

0:49.5

coronavirus stimulus package, the challenges associated with policing massive government

0:53.9

bailouts and the lessons he learned from being on the front lines the last time Congress

0:58.0

passed a major stimulus. What follows is a sample of our conversation. If you want to hear

1:02.8

our full discussion for free, go to cafe.com slash preet and sign up to receive an email

1:08.1

with a link to the episode. That's cafe.com slash preet. And if you already receive emails

1:13.3

from cafe, then check your inbox. It should be there or arrive shortly. One of the issues

1:21.7

is whether or not an inspector general can be fired for any reason. And this inspector

1:26.6

general can only be fired for cause. And the president wrote or at least signed a letter

1:31.1

that was kind of short that basically said that this inspector general no longer had

1:35.3

his fullest confidence, which doesn't usually meet the standard for cause. What do you

1:41.4

make of it? Generally speaking, and when I serve as special inspector general, I served

...

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