Commotion: Politicization of Biden Firing Political Appointees

On Wednesday, September 8, the Biden administration announced it was terminating 18 Trump appointees from various military academy advisory boards. There was immediate pushback from board members, including Trump's well-known former chief counsel and press secretary Kellyanne Conway and Sean Spicer (respectively). The former Office of Management and Budget (OMB) director, Russ Vought, also appointed under President Trump, said in a tweet, "No. It’s a three year term," suggesting that he couldn't be fired before the end of his term. 

This recent round of political pruning comes just several months after Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stripped hundreds of Trump appointees of their posts at the Pentagon. 

While the story quickly picked up steam, Conway tweeted out a letter to Biden that detailed her opinions on getting fired. In her letter she accused the Biden administration of being "petty and political," saying, "President Biden, I'm not resigning, but you should."

As the story continued to trend, the internet debated whether presidents could, or should, fire a former president's political appointees, and whether or not the move was political.