It's official: Chad Wolf is not really acting anything
Here's a fascinating ruling by the Government Accountability Office on the greasy general of Trump's private army that has been occupying Portland.
Upon Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s resignation on April 10, 2019, the official who assumed the title of Acting Secretary had not been designated in the order of succession to serve upon the Secretary’s resignation. Because the incorrect official assumed the title of Acting Secretary at that time, subsequent amendments to the order of succession made by that official were invalid and officials who assumed their positions under such amendments, including Chad Wolf and Kenneth Cuccinelli, were named by reference to an invalid order of succession.
So all that tear gas that Portland inhaled? It doesn't count, I guess.
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ReplyDeleteAnd what pray tell, does it mean -- if anything -- that Chad Wolf had not been designated in the order of succession to serve as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) upon the resignation of Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. And further, what -- if anything -- does it mean that the subsequent amendments of the order of succession made by Chard Wolf (as Acting Secretary albeit he had apparently no authority to so act as Acting Secretary due to not being designated to serve in the order of succession). are invalid.
ReplyDeleteNow the Homeland Security Act says that if the secretary position is vacant, the deputy secretary and the undersecretary for management are second and third in line for the position. Now if Ken Cuccinelli, the Acting Deputy Director of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) did not have a valid appointment, and thus could not succeed to the Acting Director of DHS position, and we assume, as it appears to be, that Kevin K. McAllenan was a validly appointed Acting Secretary of DHS, then would the status of Acting Secretary of DHS return to him? No, since he resigned on Friday, October 11th, 2019, as Acting Secretary.
David Pekoske was the Acting Deputy Secretary of DHS on October 11, 2019, and thus succeeded to the Acting Secretary of DHS upon Kevin P. McALlenan's departure, but he was not chosen to succeed Kevin B. McAllenan as Acting Secretary of DHS, Chad Wolf was and was designated Acting Secretary of Homeland Security by President Trump on November 13, 2019, albeit the validity of such appointment is in question since Chad Wolf was not in the proper place in the order of succession.
If I didn’t know better I might suspect that this was some type of law school examination question thought up by some law professor like Jack Bogdanski, albeit he teaches tax law as I recall. The hour is late and I need some sleep, but I'm going to return to this tomorrow, albeit I suspect that some smart young lawyer working for Pat Cipollone in the Office of Counsel to the President and Vice President (White House Legal Counsel) had this figured out weeks ago.