At least two controversial decisions by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos are under review by the inspector general. | Jose Luis Magana/AP Photo Education Trump backtracks on replacement of Education Department watchdog

The White House on Friday reversed its decision to abruptly replace the top acting watchdog at the Education Department after the move drew swift backlash from multiple congressional Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

President Donald Trump had appointed Phil Rosenfelt, the department's deputy general counsel, as the new acting inspector general, which Democrats said threatened the watchdog's independence from the leadership of the agency. But the White House has now rescinded that appointment, an Education Department spokesperson said.


“After the designation of the acting [Inspector General] was made, the matter came to the attention of new personnel in the White House," the spokesperson, Liz Hill, said. "After they reevaluated the situation, the decision was made, in an abundance of caution, to rescind the designation.”

Trump's initial appointment of Rosenfelt as the agency's new acting inspector general, which POLITICO first reported on Thursday, came without any public explanation. Rosenfelt had been set to replace Sandra Bruce, the deputy inspector general, who had been acting in the top spot for less than two months. But Bruce will now continue as acting inspector general since Trump has rescinded his appointment of Rosenfelt, Hill said.

The White House's reversal on Friday came just hours after the top Democrats in Congress who oversee the Education Department demanded that Secretary Betsy DeVos turn over internal documents relating to the Trump administration’s decision to appoint a new watchdog.

Democrats said they were pleased the White House backed down but vowed to continue to scrutinize the matter.

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“While I appreciate that the White House has reversed its decision, the unprecedented attempt to replace the Acting Inspector General with an internal department official raises serious concerns," said Rep. Bobby Scott, (D-Va.), chairman of the House education committee. He added that Democrats would "continue to focus on ensuring that the [Inspector General] is independent and can investigate potential issues without restrictions."

Sen. Patty Murray, (D-Wash.), the top Democrat on the Senate education committee, said that the administration was "scrambling to backtrack from this now that they have been caught."

"The public deserves to know how this unethical and baffling decision was made in the first place and to be confident that it won’t happen again," Murray said in a statement. "I am going to hold the Department accountable until we get those answers.”

Scott and Murray signed a letter to DeVos earlier on Friday blasting the Trump administration's effort to replace the watchdog and demanding her agency explain how the decision was made. They were joined by Rep. Rosa DeLauro, (D-Conn.), the chairwoman of the House Appropriations subcommittee overseeing the department's funding.

Warren, the Massachusetts Democrat and 2020 presidential contender, said in a separate letter to the White House on Thursday that she worried the appointment “will do grave damage to the independence and effectiveness” of the inspector general.

The department's Office of Inspector General itself had also raised questions about the sudden reshuffling. A spokesperson for the inspector general’s office said in an email to POLITICO on Thursday that Rosenfelt’s apparent dual role as a top attorney representing the department and the new watchdog raised “independence concerns.”

Catherine Grant, the spokesperson, said officials there “do not know nor have any specifics about Mr. Rosenfelt's position(s)," adding that "it does raise independence concerns."

The inspector general’s office is charged with investigating fraud, abuse and other problems in department programs as well as the schools and colleges that receive federal funding.

At least two controversial decisions by DeVos are under review by the inspector general now. It has opened inquiries into DeVos decision to reinstate an accreditor of for-profit colleges as well as her agency's dismissal of civil rights complaints that alleged discrimination.

The inspector general's office has also taken issue with some of DeVos policy moves. In December, the watchdog disclosed in a report to Congress that it had previously warned against the Trump administration's plan to eliminate Obama-era rules aimed at for-profit colleges “without an adequate replacement to ensure accountability.”

DeVos has proposed eliminating those rules, known as the "gainful employment" regulations, which cut off federal funding to low-performing programs at for-profit schools and other career colleges.

Rosenfelt was set to become the second acting inspector general at the Education Department in less than two months. He was to replace Bruce, the deputy inspector general, who had been acting in the top watchdog post since the retirement in November of Kathleen Tighe, an Obama appointee who had been the permanent inspector general since 2010.

The department’s succession plan and the Inspector General Act call for the deputy to serve as the acting inspector general in the case of a vacancy. But under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, the president can override that plan by appointing a Senate-confirmed political appointee or high-level career staffer as acting inspector general.

Rosenfelt is a longtime career department official. He was acting secretary of Education for several weeks at the beginning of the Trump administration, until DeVos was confirmed by the Senate.

Warren, (D-Mass.), wrote in her letter that she had “no reason to question his ethics and integrity.”

“But the decision to replace Ms. Bruce without explanation, and with a senior agency official who appears to be still serving in that capacity, is troubling because it is vital that the work of the OIG remain uninterrupted and that the IG operate independently from the White House and from Department leadership,” she wrote.

The White House has not named a nominee for the role, which requires Senate confirmation. The White House declined repeated requests for comment on the issue.