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The Talented Patrick Nagle, Social Security's Chief Judge [1]

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Date: 2023-01-10

Mr. Nagle is Chief Judge of the largest judiciary in the world, with well over 1,000 administrative law judges, at the Social Security Administration.

In July 2022, Lisa Rein of the Washington Post wrote about the head of the Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) adjudication component being impaired at work. See www.washingtonpost.com/… An internal report from the SSA Office of the Inspector General (OIG), with witness statements, painted an unflattering picture of the deputy commissioner, who had displayed “significant anomalies” at work, per Ms. Rein, “over the course of at least a year.”

While the story was unusual in detailing a government official’s struggles with substance use and/or an underlying medical condition, Ms. Rein noted that this official’s department “manage[d] half a million hearings and appeals a year for claimants seeking disability, retirement and survivor benefits, with … administrative law judges and staffers in 10 regions and close to 170 local hearing offices.” There appeared to be no hard evidence that the work of the department had suffered, but there was internal staff frustration and “the apparent inaction [by leadership on this matter] could lead employees to hesitate to report management problems in the future.”

The next month, the Agency reassigned this official. See www.washingtonpost.com/… Cue Mr. Nagle, this official’s former subordinate and SSA’s Chief Judge. Mr. Nagle leads the more than 1,000 SSA administrative law judges (ALJs) who handle the foregoing “half a million hearings and appeals a year.” Following the July 2022 Washington Post article, Mr. Nagle kicked off his campaign for 46th Ward alderman in Chicago in August 2022. See patricknaglefor46.com/…

The problem is, Mr. Nagle’s campaign raises ethical concerns, including apparent misuse of position for personal gain, which has been raised to the SSA Office of the Inspector General (OIG). See aljdiscussion.proboards.com/… Mr. Nagle, in the Meet Patrick section of his campaign website, leads with both his federal title and his alleged position accomplishments. See patricknaglefor46.com/… Under the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch, an employee shall not use his public office for his own private gain. 5 CFR 2635.702. Further, “an employee shall not use or permit the use of his Government position or title or any authority associated with his public office in a manner that could reasonably be construed to imply that his agency or the Government sanctions or endorses his personal activities or those of another.” 5 CFR 2635.702(b).

In December 2022, the Washington Post reported on Senate investigators readying to probe the SSA OIG, given lawmaker “concerns about management failures compromising its mission.” See www.washingtonpost.com/… In addition to apparent misuse of position for personal gain in his aldermanic campaign, another complaint involving Mr. Nagle, which has been pending before the SSA OIG for nearly two years, alleges nepotism (with his National Hearing Center (NHC) judge wife in his chain of command) and directives to subordinate judges not to follow the law. See patch.com/…

It’s odd that Mr. Nagle, who supervises the more than one thousand administrative law judges (ALJs) at SSA — with pending OIG complaints on misuse of position for personal gain, nepotism, and directives not to follow the law — garners little attention. There have also been allegations of years-long retaliation against a judge in his chain of command. See patch.com/… While his former supervisor was roasted over “multiple anomalies” at work related to substance use and/or an underlying medical condition, the talented Mr. Nagle seemingly escapes notice.

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[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/1/10/2146490/-The-Talented-Patrick-Nagle-Social-Security-s-Chief-Judge

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