WASHINGTON (AP) – A government watchdog says the Department of Commerce is trying to block the results of an investigation into the agency’s role in reprimanding forecasters that contradicted President Donald Trump’s inaccurate claims about hurricane Dorian’s path last year.
The allegation came from Peggy Gustafson, the inspector general of the Department of Commerce, who wrote a memo expressing “deep concern” that the publication of the report had been blocked.
It is the latest turning point in a saga that prompted the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to punish government forecasters who disagreed with the president after publishing inaccurate information about the hurricane’s path through the southern United States.
Trump later displayed a forecast card modified by Sharpie in the Oval Office to defend his inaccurate tweet.
Gustafson said in a memo to Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, released late Wednesday by her office, that the department uses “amorphous and generalized” claims to preclude the publication of certain materials in the report.
“The final publication of our review was delayed, foiled and effective (stopped) by the Department’s refusal to identify certain areas of privilege,” wrote Gustafson, appointed by President Barack Obama.
On Thursday, officials from the Department of Commerce wrote in a response from The Associated Press that the department “does not prevent the Inspector General’s office from publishing the report in the form the Inspector General deems appropriate.”
Commercial lawyers and NOAA said the report as it is may have implications for future negotiations between the agencies and the Inspector General’s office and may contain privileged information.
Gustafson’s memo said that communication with trade and NOAA officials was collegial throughout the investigation, but changed after her office submitted the final privilege review report.
“This shift in tone appears to be directly related to the content of our report and the responsibility outcomes of the high-level individuals involved,” wrote Gustafson. “I am concerned that the content of our report and our results have led to this retaliation.”
The full investigation should be released next Monday. Gustafson said she gave Commerce and NOAA until Thursday to provide “accurate and clear markings of the proposed editors for certain privileges.”
Sens. Jerry Moran, a Republican from Kansas, and Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat from New Hampshire, said in a joint letter to Ross that they expected commerce employees to “fully cooperate in all investigative matters and the OIG (Office of Inspector General) support “and” all The efforts to undermine or suppress the OIG are in direct contradiction to the authorities that Congress has given to inspectors-general. “
A brief summary of the investigation released last week included the results that Commerce led a “flawed process” that prompted the NOAA to make the statement asking National Weather Service forecasters in Birmingham, Alabama for a tweet labeled “Alabama will see NO effects from #Dorian. ”
The investigation was spurred on by a series of events that began when Trump made comments on Twitter and in the Oval Office that did not match the government’s official forecasts.
As the storm approached the United States, Trump tweeted that Alabama, along with the Carolinas and Georgia, would “most likely be hit (much) harder than expected,” despite the National Hurricane Center’s announcement that Dorian would not hit Alabama.
Twenty minutes after Trump’s tweet, meteorologists sent the tweet to the National Weather Service office in Birmingham. The NOAA later issued a statement in which it chastised the Tweet from the Birmingham Weather Bureau.
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