The swamp is alive and well in Washington D.C. The Associated Press reports that a top Biden official is accused of spreading lucrative contracts and high-paying government positions to her many friends.
According to sources, the Department of Justice’s Inspector General is probing Anne Milgram. She is President Joe Biden’s Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) head and is believed to have doled out goodies to her liberal friends through no-bid contracts.
KJP dodges the question when asked if the Biden admin is aware of DEA administrator Anne Milgram improperly awarding millions of dollars worth of no-bid contracts to past associates:
“That’s the first time I’m hearing this…I just don’t have anything to share at this time….” pic.twitter.com/MdvvYYr0dF
— Conservative War Machine (@WarMachineRR) April 19, 2023
Before her stint in Washington, she was a law professor and then the attorney general of New Jersey. That preceded her current position, which the IG is investigating over allegations of putting millions of dollars of government funds into the hands of her associates.
Some of the contracts were for “strategic planning and communication,” and the AP reported that they were awarded “at costs far exceeding pay for government officials.”
So much for Biden’s “transparency.”
Scott Amey of the nonpartisan Project on Government Oversight told the AP that several of the contracts appear to be “swampy.” He said that awarding government projects is not supposed to skirt the hiring process. Avoiding preferential treatment and a conflict of interest is important.
Amey added that “contracts should never be awarded based on who you know.”
The report noted a $1.4 million payment made to the company WilmerHale. It was tasked with conducting an outside review of foreign operations by Milgram’s DEA with the objective of avoiding misconduct and scandals.
The irony will not be lost on investigators.
The final report was broadly panned for lacking the depth it should have reached. Assisting in the review was former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara’s close associate Boyd Johnson. Bharara, according to the AP, is Milgram’s longtime friend.
The project bypassed the government’s normal bidding process because the DEA argued that there was “urgency” to counter the threat of illicit drugs.
The AP reported that the inquiry began several months ago after employees complained about the process. Details emerged from IG interviews with several people who came forward with documentary evidence after being granted anonymity.
There are a wide array of possible outcomes, ranging from administrative sanctions to recommendations for criminal prosecution.
Milgram reportedly was brought into the agency and instructed to clean house.
