4 senators call on president to fire Afghanistan spending watchdog over management failures

4 senators urge Obama to fire Afghanistan watchdog

WASHINGTON — A group of senators is urging President Barack Obama to fire the special inspector general responsible for overseeing how billions of American tax dollars are being spent to rebuild Afghanistan.

In a letter sent Thursday to Obama, the lawmakers — three Republicans and one Democrat — say the inspector general, Arnold Fields, is at the helm of a failing organization and needs to go. The senators said three independent reviews of Fields’ office found multiple problems, including the failure to meet minimum standards for conducting investigations.

Fields has defended his and his staff’s performance. He has also said his office is making improvements following the reviews by the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency.

The senators are Democrat Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Republicans Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Susan Collins of Maine.