DEA chief faces probe into 'swampy' hires, no-bid contracts by federal watchdogs

Washington: A federal watchdog is looking into allegations that the US Drug Enforcement Administration under chief Anne Milgram, inappropriately gave millions of dollars in no-bid contracts to recruit her former allies, according to sources familiar with the investigation. “These changes have been made through an extensive and multi-part process, and we are committed to ensuring that DEA is working relentlessly to protect the national security, safety, and health of the American people.” Anthony Coley, a former Justice Department spokesman who has known Milgram for 15 years, said the investigation may stem from employees who aren’t happy with such organizational change and are seeking ways to “push back or undermine it, even if the underlying allegations aren’t true.” “But that’s what inspectors general are for,” he said, “to call balls and strikes.” Mandate to clean house With a tough New Jersey bravado and data-driven “Moneyball” approach to the war on drugs, the 52-year-old Milgram came to the DEA nearly two years ago with a mandate to clean house. “It’s a complete waste of taxpayers’ money,” said Matthew Donahue, who led DEA’s foreign operations until he butted heads with Milgram and was transferred to Colombia, a demotion that prompted him to retire. Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, a longtime voice against government waste and member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, ripped WilmerHale’s review as “stunningly vague” and recently sent Johnson a letter requesting a range of records, background on his relationship with Milgram and asking whether she or anyone else at DEA requested edits of the report. The Clearing’s $4.7 million in billings to the DEA for “strategic planning and communication consulting services” over the past two years have accounted for 30% of its federal contracts during that period, records show.