Lawmakers are asking the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) inspector general to recuse himself from the ongoing investigation into the Secret Service’s “deleted” text messages.
Inspector General Joseph Kufari notified Congress earlier this month that text messages from the agency on Jan. 5 and Jan. 6, 2021, appeared to have been deleted as part of a device replacement program, leaving lawmakers angry that he waited months to warn them.
“We are writing to express our grave concern about Inspector General Kufari’s failure to promptly notify Congress of important information while conducting an investigation into the Secret Service’s preparation and response to the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol,” House Interior works on security Chairman Benny Thompson (D-Miss.) and House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (DN.Y.) wrote in a letter.
“These omissions left Congress in the dark about key developments in this investigation and may have cost investigators valuable time to gather relevant evidence,” they wrote.
“Inspector General Kufari’s actions in this matter, which follow other troubling reports about his conduct as Inspector General, cast serious doubt on his independence and ability to effectively conduct such an important investigation.” In light of these serious failings, we are demanding that Inspector General Kufari recuse himself from the ongoing investigation into the Secret Service’s deletion of text messages,” the two lawmakers wrote.
It’s a remarkable request because inspectors general are expected to impartially review issues at the agencies they help hold accountable. Lawmakers asked the Board of Inspectors General for Integrity and Efficiency to appoint another inspector general to conduct the investigation.
The letter alleges that Kufari had known since December that messages sent and received by the Secret Service during that time period were no longer accessible.
“Yet Inspector General Kufari took no steps to inform Congress of this serious and egregious violation of federal records laws,” they wrote.
Cuffari’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Kufari’s notification to Congress sparked a flurry of activity. The letter was referred to the House Committee investigating the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, which is also chaired by Thompson.
After they became public, the National Archives asked the DHS custodian of records to do its own investigation of the texts, and the committee on January 6 also subpoenaed the texts.
The Secret Service said it had only one recorded text from that period, noting that individual agents were required to preserve the text messages before the agency switched to new mobile device management software.
Among the agents whose texts cannot be explained is Bobby Engel, Donald Trump’s security chief, who White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson said was “attacked” by the then-president when he was informed that the Secret Service they will not take him to the Capitol on January 6th.
The Jan. 6 panel has since argued that the Secret Service’s work on the matter could violate public records law.
But Tuesday’s letter indicates that Cuffari’s delay may also be a violation of law — in this case, the Inspector General Act — that requires inspectors general to report particularly serious matters to their agency head.
Kufari apparently failed to alert Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, something lawmakers said “calls into question whether Inspector General Kufari has the professional judgment and capacity to effectively carry out his duties in this investigation.”
His only warning of struggles with the Secret Service came in a report earlier this year in which he complained of “significant delays in the OIG’s access to Secret Service records” that “hindered” his Jan. 6 investigation.
Mayorkas’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Kuffari has been inspector general at DHS since 2019 after being nominated for the role by Trump.
The committee chairmen listed a long line of other complaints against Kufari, pointing to previous letters about slow-moving investigations into the deaths of two children in Customs and Border Protection custody and other cases in which he appeared to dismiss findings detailing domestic violence and sexual harassment by DHS officials.
But they also wrote that “this is not the first time Inspector General Kufari has shown reluctance to investigate the Secret Service,” saying that Kufari refused to own up to excessive use of force or evaluate the agency’s COVID protocols.
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He also refused to investigate the Secret Service’s role in clearing Lafayette Park after protests over the death of George Floyd at the hands of police.
The letter gives Cuffari until August 9 to respond.
– Updated at 5:45 p.m
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