The Walpin firing

Curious about how the St. Petersburg Times was treating the story about the firing of Gerald Walpin, I used the Times' search feature to hunt up its lone mention in an AP story published today.

WASHINGTON — An inspector general fired by President Barack Obama said Friday he acted "with the highest integrity" in investigating AmeriCorps and other government-funded national service programs.

The story does open with Walpin on the defensive, but the reader who takes in more than three paragraphs will eventually find the dots that others are connecting to question this move by President Obama.

It looks like protection of a political ally at first blush, as Walpin predicted in his e-mail reply to the person who asked for his resignation. Please read the story by Byron York at the Washington Examiner (linked above).