Paul Ingrassia has removed himself from consideration to lead the Office of Special Counsel. His decision comes on the heels of the release of explosive text messages that sparked alarm. Today, the Office of Special Counsel is responsible for enforcing federal whistleblower protections. Ingrassia was obviously poised to step into the role. Now, he works as a White House liaison at the Department of Homeland Security.
Ingrassia’s nomination had already run into deep trouble from Senate Republicans, with at least five senators indicating that they would oppose her. Curiously enough, Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin was on record as saying he would oppose Ingrassia. Senate Majority Leader John Thune raised alarm, calling for the nomination to be withdrawn.
That controversy took a sharp turn for the worse when a report by Politico disclosed that Ingrassia had sent racist text messages. In these outreach messages, he allegedly boasted of having “a Nazi streak.” As justification for that, he proposed that we “throw Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the seventh circle of hell.” This shocking revelation led to an investigation launched by the Department of Homeland Security earlier this month.
Ingrassia, who disputes the allegations, through his attorney Edward Paltzik disputed the authenticity of the text messages. He mentioned the possibility that artificial intelligence could have created the material. He previously painted his client as “the last person on earth that’s a Nazi. Paltzik went on to elaborate that Ingrassia’s remarks were “self-deprecating” and indicative of “satirical humor.”
Pushback on Ingrassia’s nomination grew as more information about his inflammatory messages was released. As a consequence, he has now chosen to drop out from the nomination process altogether. His departure leaves the future of the Office of Special Counsel unclear, but OSC’s future looks optimistic. Now, the race to find a new nominee continues.