WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has fired about 17 independent inspectors general at government agencies, a sweeping action to remove oversight of his new administration that some members of Congress are suggesting violated federal oversight laws.

President Donald Trump fired the inspectors general from more than a dozen federal agencies in a Friday night purge, according to a Trump administration official, paving the way for him to install his own picks for the independent watchdog roles.

Several key U.S. Senate Republicans on Sunday defended President Donald Trump'sdecision to fire independent government watchdogs across at least 17 federal agencies, even though the move ran afoul of federal law.

The White House defied a law that requires giving Congress 30 days’ notice and detailed reasons before removing the watchdog officials.

President Donald Trump reportedly fired 17 inspectors general overnight. According to multiple outlets, most of the people fired were inspectors Trump had appointed during his first term. They were all notified by email from the White House personnel director that their firing was effective immediately.

U.S. President Donald Trump fired 17 independent watchdogs at multiple government agencies on Friday, a person with knowledge of the matter said, eliminating a critical oversight component and clearing the way to replace them with loyalists.

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump fired over a dozen inspectors general across federal agencies late Friday night, one of the fired officials confirmed to USA TODAY.