Tag: Hatch Act

Rep. Phillips introduces a bill to ban political use of White House grounds

WASHINGTON, DC— Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) has introduced a bill banning the use of White House grounds for political purposes – the Our Lawn Act.  

For nearly a century, the Hatch Act has existed to provide a clear distinction between public servants and electoral candidates. Both parties have observed and respected this law for decades and have condemned apparent Hatch Act violations.

Unfortunately, this administration has shown, through providing the White House and other federal property as a staging area for the Republican National Convention, that we must continue to work to ensure that officials are not misusing public property and the prestige of office for their own political gain.  These actions misappropriated public resources for the private benefit of the Republican Party and put federal employees in a position where their employers were ordering them to violate the law.

Continue reading “Rep. Phillips introduces a bill to ban political use of White House grounds”

The Hatch Act, the law Trump flouted at the RNC, explained

The Hatch Act is designed to protect the rule of law. Trump flouts it openly.

The United States prohibits most federal employees from engaging in certain political activity — especially if those employees are engaged in fundamentally nonpartisan activity such as diplomacy — in order to prevent abuse of power and corruption. On Tuesday night, however, the Trump administration flouted these limits by holding part of the Republican National Convention at the White House and broadcasting a partisan speech by the nation’s top diplomat.

The Hatch Act of 1939 imposes strict limits on most federal civilian workers who want to engage in political activity, and some Cabinet departments augment these statutory limits with additional policies intended to maintain a clear wall of separation between partisan politics and nonpartisan government functions.

These restrictions on government workers exist for two interlocking reasons. As the Supreme Court explained in United States Civil Service Commission v. National Association of Letter Carriers (1973), “it is in the best interest of the country, indeed essential, that federal service should depend upon meritorious performance rather than political service.” But if civil servants are free to engage in political activities, presidential appointees could reward loyal partisans and punish civil servants who favor the party that does not control the White House. Continue reading.

Pompeo Skirting Legality With ‘Official’ Trips To Kansas

It looks like Secretary of State Mike Pompeo may be violating the Hatch Act.

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), the top-ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, asked the Office of Special Counsel to look into whether Pompeo’s repeated trips to Kansas violate the act.

The Hatch Act bars executive branch employees from using government resources for partisan purposes, such as campaigning while on the clock. But it appears Pompeo may be doing just that.

View the complete October 31 article by Lisa Needham on the National Memo website here.

Oversight Committee Schedules Hearing On Conway’s Hatch Act Violations

The Trump administration is refusing to act on Kellyanne Conway’s constant lawbreaking, and a House committee chairman has had enough.

The Office of Special Counsel (OSC), which is headed by a Trump appointee, announced Thursday that Conway repeatedly violated the Hatch Act, a law prohibiting certain federal employees from “engaging in partisan political activity” while in their official government capacity, and recommended she be fired. The OSC cited more than half a dozen television interviews Conway had given as examples of her violating the law.

However, the White House isn’t budging and dismissed the idea that she would be punished. But Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-M.D.,) the chairman of the Oversight and Reform Committee, announced late Thursday that Conway is not off the hook, and scheduled a hearing with the OSC.

View the complete June 14 article by Mike Stankiewicz on the National Memo website here.

Trump says he will not fire Kellyanne Conway for Hatch Act violations

President Trump said Friday he will not fire Kellyanne Conway as White House counselor for violating the Hatch Act, rebuking the recommendation of a top federal watchdog.

“No, I’m not going to fire her. I think she’s a terrific person,” Trump said during a call-in interview on “Fox & Friends.”

The president’s comments came one day after the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) publicly said Conway should be removed from office, calling her a “repeat offender” who has flouted the law barring federal employees from engaging in political activity in their official duties.

View the complete June 14 article by Jordan Fabian on The Hill website here.

Federal watchdog recommends Conway be removed from role for Hatch Act violations

A federal watchdog agency on Thursday urged President Trump to remove Kellyanne Conway as White House counselor over repeated violations of the Hatch Act, which bars federal employees from engaging in elections in their official capacity.

The Office of Special Counsel (OSC) sent a 17-page report to Trump accusing Conway of breaking the law on numerous occasions “by disparaging Democratic presidential candidates while speaking in her official capacity during television interviews and on social media” and calling on the president to oust her “immediately.”

“As a highly visible member of the administration, Ms. Conway’s violations, if left unpunished, would send a message to all federal employees that they need not abide by the Hatch Act’s restrictions,” special counsel Henry Kerner wrote to Trump. “Her actions thus erode the principal foundation of our democratic system — the rule of law.”

View the complete June 13 article by Jordan Fabian and Al Weaver on The Hill website here.

Ryan Zinke’s trip to Pennsylvania may have violated the Hatch Act

The following article by Mark Hand was posted on the ThinkProgress website March 13, 2018:

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke. Credit: Melina Mara/Washngton Post via Getty Images

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s visit to a small town south of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, less than three weeks before a special election, is drawing scrutiny to determine whether the official trip was really an opportunity to throw his support behind the Republican hoping to fill the open congressional seat.

Several politicians were on hand for the February event in East Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, reportedly organized to announce how much funding Pennsylvania will receive in abandoned mine grant funding. The most prominent politician on hand was Rick Saccone, a Republican candidate for Congress who has received strong support from President Donald Trump. Continue reading “Ryan Zinke’s trip to Pennsylvania may have violated the Hatch Act”

White House Aides Blur the Legal Lines Between Partisans and Public Servants

The following article by Julie Hirschfeld Davis was posted on the New York Times website March 12, 2018:

The Office of Special Counsel has recommended disciplinary action against Kellyanne Conway, the counselor to the president, who used her official title and the White House as a backdrop as she weighed in on the Alabama Senate election. Credit Doug Mills/The New York Times

WASHINGTON — President Trump’s social media director, Dan Scavino Jr., posted a message on his government Twitter account calling for the defeat of a Republican congressman who had angered the president.

His West Wing counselor, Kellyanne Conway, weighed in on the Alabama Senate race during television interviews from the White House lawn.

His son-in-law, Jared Kushner, used his White House title on a news release for Mr. Trump’s re-election bid. Continue reading “White House Aides Blur the Legal Lines Between Partisans and Public Servants”

White House Denies Kellyanne Conway Violated Hatch Act

The following article by John T. Bennett was posted on the RollCall website March 6, 2018:

Trump aide accused of advocating for political candidates while on government business

The White House disputes White House aide Kellyanne Conway violated the Hatch Act by advocating for political candidates. Credit: Thomas McKinless/CQ Roll Call file photo

The White House denies a special counsel’s finding that White House aide Kellyanne Conway violated the Hatch Act by advocating for political candidates while conducting official government business.

The special counsel, Henry Kerner, told President Donald Trump in a letter that during television interviews late last year Conway “impermissibly mixed official government business with political views about candidates in the Alabama special election.”

Kerner pointed to interviews Conway did in November and December with CNN’s “New Day” and Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends” programs. The interviews came during a special election in the Yellowhammer State in which Democrat Doug Jones defeated controversial Republican Roy Moore. Continue reading “White House Denies Kellyanne Conway Violated Hatch Act”

Kellyanne Conway Under Federal Investigation After Ethics Complaint

The following article by Mary Papenfuss was posted on the Huffington Post website November 30, 2017:

Conway slammed Alabama Senate candidate Doug Jones on national TV in violation of the Hatch Act, document argues.

Federal officials have opened an investigation into activities by senior White House counselor Kellyanne Conway following a complaint that she violated ethics laws.

The probe aims to determine if Conway broke the law when she slammed Democrat Doug Jones — who is battling Republican Roy Moore to become Alabama’s next senator — on national TV. Continue reading “Kellyanne Conway Under Federal Investigation After Ethics Complaint”