Cummings Asks White House: Which Ethics Rules Don't Apply To You?

[DonViejo]

By MATT SHUHAM Published MARCH 9, 2017, 6:17 PM EDT


Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) wrote to the White House’s top lawyer Thursday, demanding to know why, in the White House’s words, “many regulations promulgated by the Office of Government Ethics do not apply” to executive branch employees.

At issue was the White House's response to Kellyanne Conway, counselor to the President, plugging Ivanka Trump’s clothing line during an appearance on “Fox and Friends” on Feb. 9.

Despite the Office of Government Ethics' recommendation that the White House consider disciplinary action against Conway, no such action was taken. After reviewing the incident, Deputy White House Counsel Stefan Passantino wrote to OGE Director Walter M. Shaub, Jr.: “We concluded that Ms. Conway acted inadvertently and is highly unlikely to do so again.”

“I remain concerned about Ms. Conway’s misuse of position,” Cummings wrote to the White House on Thursday. “Your letter concedes that Conway’s televised statements from the White House press briefing room implicated the prohibition on using one’s official position to endorse any product or service. When an employee’s conduct violates 5 C.F.R. § 2635.702, disciplinary action serves to deter future misconduct. Not taking disciplinary action against a senior official under such circumstances risks undermining the ethics program.”

more
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/cummings-asks-white-house-which-ethics-rules-dont-apply

[volstork]

1. Well, we all know

IOKIYAR

[Achilleaze]

2. "None of the above." - republican Draft-&-Tax-Dodger-in-Chief

and the repubs just love this Con Man, he's their freaking 'family values' role model for generations to come.

[DK504]

17. Poor little sociopath, can't break every rule in the book.

Well he is trying as hard as he can, but until Congress decides to do their job, we kinda fucked.

[Ligyron]

3. While I'm glad to see her called out on it

and she should get some mild rebuke or punishment, I do think she did this inadvertently. She must have been totally clueless about the rule the way she so blatantly violated it.

[catbyte]

4. Ignorance of the law is no excuse--especially when you work in the WH.

[Tanuki]

5. She is an attorney and should understand the principle of an ethical conflict.

I am not buying "ignorance" on this.

[JTFrog]

6. Lol, thanks for the laugh. nt

[Ligyron]

18. Oh, make no mistake about it: I hate the woman.

I just though the whole thing was a bit overblown.

The fact that she received no punishment whatsoever though, is outrageous.

But then just about everything associated with the Trump gang is.

[JTFrog]

19. Overblown? Hardly. Ethics violations aren't something to just scoff at.

Ethics violations should not be taken lightly. Especially with these greedy mother fuckers. Give an inch they will take 1000 miles.

What was overblown was the Hillary email and Benghazi witch hunts.

[littlemissmartypants]

20. She's a lawyer, psychopath and a grifter.

The pussygrabbers, one grab at anything and they think they own it all.

Further analysis is a time suck & risks a visit to the dark side.

Just rewards await them all Ligyron, at the intersection of lawlessness and nonchalance. Their times coming.

[BumRushDaShow]

8. Drumpf refused to give his staff (previously standard) ethics training

President Donald Trump’s team rejected a course for senior White House staff, Cabinet nominees and other political appointees that would have provided training on leadership, ethics and management, according to documents obtained by POLITICO. The documents suggest the program could have better prepared officials for working within existing laws and executive orders, and provided guidance on how to navigate Senate confirmation for nominees and political appointees, how to deal with congressional and media scrutiny, and how to work with Congress and collaborate with agencies — some of the same issues that have become major stumbling blocks in the early days of the administration.

But the contract was never awarded because after the election the transition team shifted its priorities, according to a letter the General Services Administration sent to bidders such as the Partnership for Public Service. The program was expected to cost $1 million, the documents show. The contract-based training program was authorized in 2000, and the Obama and Bush transitions both received the training. “It has been determined that the requirements as defined in the RFQ do not accurately reflect the current needs of the Presidential Transition Team,” the GSA contracting officer, Matthew Gormley, wrote in the Jan. 10 letter.

The agency’s cancellation notice elaborated on the reasons for dropping the program. “As a result of a change in Presidential Transition Team leadership after the Nov. 8, 2016, election, there have been changes in the PTT’s goals for the political appointee orientation program,” it said. Shortly after the election, Vice President Mike Pence took over running the transition from New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

http://www.politico.com/story/2017/03/trump-ethics-white-house-235586

[George II]

11. The three things they are lacking the most - leadership, ethics and management.

[BumRushDaShow]

14. Because they "know all and nothing existed before them". nt

[gordianot]

9. Trump's real purpose in the Presidency is to make money and take bribes.

Any of the criminal elite or Lieutenants caught and removed in the act, good riddance. None of them deserve a moment's empathy or support.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

7. Re: "the White House's top lawyer"

Meet the fiery lawyer at the center of virtually every Trump controversy. https://wpo.st/1gnb2 @sarihorwitz @mattzap

Link to tweet

Who is Donald McGahn, the lawyer at the center of Trump controversies?

by Matt Zapotosky and Sari Horwitz 15 Feb 2017 page A5

Less than a month into his presidency, Donald Trump has faced no shortage of controversies. Donald McGahn - the fiery lawyer who has represented the president since before his election - has been at the center of virtually every one.
....

McGahn, 48, is a veteran campaign finance lawyer and former commissioner on the Federal Election Commission. Before taking over the role of White House counsel, he worked at the Jones Day law firm and as general counsel to the Trump campaign. He is a consummate Washington insider, but like the man for whom he works, he has an independent streak, those who know him say. ... He plays the guitar and once sported shoulder-length hair. ... "Don is not a buttoned-down guy," said Bradley A. Smith, a law professor at Capital University and longtime professional friend of McGahn.

On the Federal Election Commission, where he served from 2008 to 2013, McGahn repeatedly clashed with Democratic commissioners as he worked to loosen regulations on campaign spending and place limits on the commission's ability to launch investigations of violations of campaign finance law. Democratic Commissioner Ellen L. Weintraub said McGahn "came into this agency with the agenda of blowing it up from the inside" and resisted pursuing virtually all complaints of election-related wrongdoing. ... "One thing that does trouble me a little bit in the role that he's in now is he was never someone who was open to new ideas or people challenging his views," Weintraub said.

McGahn in 2011 helped protect Trump from a possible investigation. Then mulling a run for president, Trump was accused of violating Federal Election Commission regulations by channeling money through the Trump Organization to the website ShouldTrumpRun.com. Commission staff members recommended that Trump be investigated, but the case was dismissed after McGahn and two other Republican commissioners voted against the recommendation. Trump ultimately did not run for president in 2012.
....

[e-mail]

[e-mail]

I've used up all my visits to the Washington Post. The article appeared on page A% of the print edition on Wednesday, February 15, 2017.

Matt Zapotosky: @mattzap

@washingtonpost reporter. Ohio University grad. Cat stepdad. Detroit Lions & Washington Nats fan. [e-mail]

Sari Horwitz: @SariHorwitz

Sari Horwitz covers the Justice Department for The Washington Post. Co-author of Finding Chandra and Sniper. Bio and stories: http://wapo.st/sarihorwitz

[BumRushDaShow]

13. Here's some more excerpts

(am a subscriber)

<...>

Then-Acting Attorney General Sally Yates first told McGahn in late January that Michael Flynn, then Trump’s national security adviser, was potentially susceptible to Russian blackmail because he had misled senior administration officials about the nature of his communications with the Russian ambassador to the United States. Flynn had said publicly that he did not discuss U.S. sanctions imposed on Russia when he spoke with the ambassador in late December, when in fact he had.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Tuesday that McGahn briefed the president and a small group of senior advisers soon after receiving the message and conducted his own review to determine if Flynn had acted illegally. Spicer said McGahn determined Flynn had not, although Flynn had nonetheless lost the president’s trust. Late Monday, Flynn resigned.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/who-is-donald-mcgahn-the-fiery-lawyer-at-the-center-of-virtually-every-trump-controversy/2017/02/14/7dd185b4-f2cd-11e6-8d72-263470bf0401_story.html

Of course we are coming to know more and more of Flynn's subterfuge that they covered up.

[ornotna]

21. "Not a button down guy"

Is that code for Libertarian douche bag?
These people have no rules.

[world wide wally]

10. I sure don't understand the GOP throwing out all the rules and law for Trump and his

Merry band of losers.
Someone lied to me and said we are a nation of laws.

[90-percent]

12. Maybe this will help

“The United States is a nation of laws, badly written and randomly enforced.”

― Frank Zappa



-90%

[Amimnoch]

15. I think it's more selectively than randomly imo. nt.

[Lucinda]

16. knr