Top U.S. Official for Afghanistan Reconstruction Resigns

[WestVirginiaRebel]

Fox News:

As Vice President Biden prepares to meet Tuesday with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, the White House has announced the man overseeing U.S. funding for that country's reconstruction has resigned.

President Obama received the resignation of retired Major General Arnold Fields Monday as Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction and if complaints from members of Congress are any indication, Mr. Obama is more than likely going to accept it.

Senators have repeatedly expressed concern over Field's performance as the "SIGAR," saying he has failed to act as an independent, aggressive overseer of the billions of U.S. dollars dedicated to rebuilding Afghanistan's infrastructure and providing humanitarian assistance.

However, outwardly at least, the White House is praising Fields's performance. "His team has helped lead the effort to provide comprehensive and independent oversight of fiscal initiatives in Afghanistan," a White House press release announcing Fields's resignation reads.

"Under General Fields' tenure, SIGAR produced numerous critical reports that have improved reconstruction efforts, and helped insure that U.S.-funded programs are achieving their objectives," it continues.

But in a letter to President Obama on September 23 of last year, several prominent Senators bluntly called for Fields to be removed, saying, "We urge you to act now. We are disappointed by your Administration's ongoing failure to take decisive actions to make changes at SIGAR."

The letter was signed by Senators Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Tom Coburn (R-OK), Susan Collins (R-ME), and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), who told Mr. Obama that an investigation revealed SIGAR had failed to meet the applicable minimum standards for conducting its own investigations. Additionally, the Senators were disappointed in the high quantity of low quality audits that the office performed, which they feared would be vulnerable to challenge.

The Senators say the investigation showed that "SIGAR is a failing organization."
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Kind of like the administration...