Doge acting The President of the United States Institute of Peace, financed from Congress, Independent Think Tank, moved to free the agency of the headquarters of $ 500 million to the administration of general services, in accordance with court documents revealed in recently submitted lawsuit.
The voltages in the USIP have been escalating for weeks, starting when the Trump administration released 10 members of the agency board on March 14 and USIP employees refused to access the Doge access to the entrance door. Three days later, Doge employees arrived at the building, apparently Using the physical key of a former security contractor. Dramatic confrontations ended with a full acquisition, and a former official of the Kenneth Jackson Department took the role of the president. In this past FridayMost USIP employees received notifications of notice.
Since then, former USIP officials have filed a lawsuit against Jackson, Doge, Donald Trump and other members of the Trump administration, trying to immediately intervene “to stop the defendants from completing the unlawful dismantling of the Institute,” in accordance with the complaint. While American judge Beryl Howell rejected The request of the USIP for a ephemeral order to restore the Institute’s advice on March 19, sharply criticized the conquest of Doge in court.
Court documents submitted by the defendants on Monday reveal the next phase of the Doge plans regarding the USIP. The documents show that as at March 25, the Doge Nate Cavanaugh employee – formed in GSA – replaced Jackson as the president of the Institute. They also state that Cavanaugh has been instructed to transfer the USIP assets – including his property – to GSA. The letter describing these changes and instructions was signed by the Secretary of Defense Pete HegeSth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Cavanaugh did not answer immediately at the request for comment by Wired. The Chief Advocate of the Department of Justice in this matter did not immediately answer at the request for comment.
In a separate non -wave list, which was also included in the party of documents submitted to the court, Cavanaugh writes to the GSA administrator, Stephen Ehikian: “I came to the conclusion that in the best interest of the USIP, the Federal Government and the United States to transfer his property located at 2301 Ave NW, Washington, DC 20037, to GS and use with Exception with 100 % reimbemne building requirement. “
Cavanaugh estimates that the building has a “fair market value” of $ 500 million.
In another letter contained in the Docket of the lawsuit of March 29, the design of the architect and director for management and budget Russell Vaught writes to Ehikian to approve his request “to determine the amount of return without the cost of transferring the United States of the United States of the Main Room Institute (USIP).”
In order to clearly say: Doge forced directors and employees of an non -acne agency, he installed one of his employees of GSA as a president, and that person is now trying to transfer the Institute’s headquarters to the agency from which he arrived at the zero expense.
“The effort to transfer the building to GSA is part of the Doge textbook to run agencies via a wood chipper. This is what they are trying to do,” says George Foote, a long -term external consultant of the USIP. “They try to kill the agency, which they have no right.”
Judge Howell will decide whether to allow the transfer on court on Tuesday; By the end of the month, a broader decision on the Case of the USIP is expected.
Additional reports of Matt Giles.