Money | Elizabeth Birnbaum Obama Fires Head of Minerals Management Service Elizabeth Birnbaum's head rolls thanks to BP oil spill By Newser Editors and Wire Services Posted May 27, 2010 10:02 AM CDT Copied In this May 18, 2010 file photo, Elizabeth Birnbaum, director of the Minerals Management Service is seen on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File) Democratic sources say the Obama administration has fired the head of the US Minerals Management Service in response to blistering criticism over lax oversight of offshore drilling. President Obama will announce the firing later today, the sources say. Elizabeth "Liz" Birnbaum had run the service in the Interior Department since July 2009. Read These Next Beyonce leaves national anthem unfinished. A space capsule carrying ashes of 160 people crashed in the ocean. The death toll in the Texas floods has risen to 27, including 9 kids. A lesson in minding your own business ... at 30,000 feet. Get breaking news in your inbox. What you need to know, as soon as we know it. Sign up Report an error