Although Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin proclaimed he reached a “Deal!” with the leaders of both Houses of Congress – and he knew of the accountability provisions included in the deal – President Donald Trump ripped up a key part of that deal two hours after signing it into law.
The smooth-yet-gutless trick came in the form of a rare presidential “signing statement”. However, this statement was not released until the Congressional leaders and Cabinet members left the Oval Office signing ceremony. (No doubt, Democratic leaders are even more glad that they were not invited to stand behind him.)
The key provision that the signing statement demolished was that the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery (the actual title) would report to Congress every three months. That report is to include “a detailed statement of all loans, loan guarantees, other