President Trump nominated a White House lawyer to serve as the special inspector to oversee how the $2 trillion approved by Congress to fight the coronavirus pandemic will be spent, according to a report.
Brian Miller, who serves as special assistant to the president and a senior associate counsel in the White House counsel’s office, will become the special inspector general for Pandemic Recovery, the Daily Caller reported on Monday.
Trump first announced he would nominate Miller last Friday.
The Senate previously confirmed Miller for the post of inspector general for the General Services Administration, where the White House said: “He led more than 300 auditors, special agents, attorneys, and support staff in conducting nationwide audits and investigations.”
The nomination comes after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi created a select committee to investigate the president’s response to the coronavirus outbreak, being led by Rep Clyburn (D-SC).
“We face a deadly virus and a battered economy with millions of Americans suddenly out of work. Congress has taken an important step in leading this crisis by passing three bills with over $2 trillion in emergency relief,” the House Speaker said. “We need to ensure those dollars are spent carefully and effectively.”
Miller would oversee the $500 billion in the stimulus bill designated to help large businesses facing financial difficulty because of the lockdowns and stay-at-home orders.
But because he was involved in the White House’s defense during Trump’s impeachment, some Democrats believe he isn’t fully neutral.
“This oversight position, which will be responsible for overseeing hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars, requires complete independence from the president and any other interested party to assure the American people that all decisions are made without fear or favor,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement Saturday. “To nominate a member of the president’s own staff is exactly the wrong type of person to choose for this position.”
