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Trump fired NTSB member Todd Inman before his term was set to expire in 2027

On March 6, 2026, the White House fired National Transportation Safety Board member Todd Inman without stated cause, despite his term running through the end of 2027. The administration later said the firing was based on allegations of on-the-job drinking, staff harassment, misuse of government resources, and missed meetings; Inman, a Republican appointed under the Biden administration, denied the allegations and called the firing "a political hit job." The dismissal follows a pattern of the administration removing members of other independent multi-member boards, including the Federal Reserve, the Surface Transportation Board, the EEOC, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ahead of their statutory terms.

Jurisdiction
Federal
Location
Washington, D.C.

Abuses documented

Actors

On March 6, 2026, the White House fired National Transportation Safety Board member Todd Inman without explanation, despite his term being set to run through the end of 2027. Inman, a Republican appointed to the board in March 2024 during the Biden administration, revealed the firing publicly on March 8, saying he had not been given a reason.

The White House said Monday, March 9, that the firing was justified by "highly concerning reports of inappropriate alcohol use on the job, harassment of staff, misuse of government resources, and failure to attend at least half of NTSB meetings," according to White House spokesman Kush Desai. Inman categorically denied the allegations, calling the action "a political hit job" and saying he would pursue legal options to defend his reputation.

Inman had been the lead NTSB board member overseeing the investigation into a 2025 midair collision between an airliner and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter near Washington, D.C., that killed 67 people, as well as the initial investigation into a UPS cargo plane crash in Kentucky that killed 15 people. His removal, following the earlier dismissal of Vice Chair Alvin Brown, left the board with only three sitting members until the Senate confirmed American Airlines executive John DeLeeuw as a fourth. The dismissal is part of a broader pattern in which the administration removed members of other independent multi-member boards -- including the Federal Reserve, the Surface Transportation Board, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission -- ahead of their statutory terms.

Why we recorded this

Independent board members like NTSB commissioners serve fixed statutory terms specifically so safety investigations stay insulated from day-to-day political pressure. Removing a sitting member without the cause his term is statutorily protected against substitutes executive will for the removal limits Congress set, and follows a broader pattern of clearing independent-agency boards of members the current administration did not appoint. This archive records when the executive branch bypasses statutory removal protections to reshape an independent oversight body's membership.

Sources

  1. White House says it fired NTSB member over misconduct, but Todd Inman denies allegations — Los Angeles Times (AP) primary accessed August 4, 2026
  2. White House says it fired NTSB member over misconduct, but Todd Inman denies allegations — Newsday (AP) secondary accessed August 4, 2026

See also