White House aide cited for tweet
Agency says social media chief’s call for electoral loss illegal
WASHINGTON — Dan Scavino Jr., the White House director of social media, violated a federal law that prohibits political activity by government employees, the federal agency empowered to enforce the law has concluded, citing the tweet Scavino sent in April calling for the defeat of a Republican member of Congress who has been critical of President Donald Trump.
The U.S. Office of Special Counsel took no official action to punish Scavino, but it issued a warning that became public Friday that “if in the future he engages in prohibited political activity while employed in a position covered by the Hatch Act,” it could move to enforce the 78-year-old law.
The feud between Scavino and Rep. Justin Amash, R-Mich., escalated during the debate over the effort to roll back President Barack Obama’s health care law, as Amash was among the conservative Freedom Caucus members who questioned the initial proposal.
The tweet sent by Scavino, who also had worked on Trump’s presidential campaign, argued that “@justinamash is a big liability. #TrumpTrain, defeat him in primary.”
The tweet by Scavino was on his personal Twitter account. But the account included a photo of him in the White House, and his biography identified him as a federal employee.
Amash wrote back that same day: “Bring it on. I’ll always stand up for liberty, the Constitution & Americans of every background,” in a tweet that also linked to Amash’s campaign fundraising website, also a possible violation.
The Office of Special Counsel, in reviewing the tweet by Scavino, concluded that “this activity violated the Hatch Act. Accordingly, we issued Scavino a warning letter,” although it would not release a copy of the letter Friday.
The decision came in response to a complaint about the tweet from the good-government group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
Noah Bookbinder, the nonprofit’s executive director, said he was pleased that the agency reached this conclusion.
“The law is clear that government officials can’t use their official positions for political or campaign activity,” Bookbinder said Friday, after his organization released the letter. “It is important to maintain real lines between government and politics and the Office of Special Counsel’s position makes clear they are going to be active to protect those lines.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This is the second time a White House official has been reprimanded for an apparent ethics violation, with Kellyanne Conway being rebuked in February by the Office of Government Ethics for urging the public to buy products sold by Ivanka Trump’s clothing brand.
The federal law puts no limits on the ability of federal officials to take positions that are critical of policies supported by others.
But a federal official may not use his official position, while on duty or in a federal workplace, to urge a particular political outcome, like the ouster of Amash, or use it to raise money for a political cause. The fundraising rule led the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics group to also file a complaint against Amash with the Office of Congressional Ethics, which has jurisdiction over members of the House.
A violation of the Hatch Act can result in a letter of reprimand; a civil fine of up to $1,000; or the suspension, demotion or even the removal of a federal employee, with enforcement powers generally vested in the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, if a charge is raised by the Office of Special Counsel, for individuals, like Scavino, who do not need Senate confirmation.
In other cases, federal employees accept settlements that often include suspensions or resignation, without a formal charge.
Members of Congress can be disciplined by the House or Senate ethics committees. The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics group has not received a response to its complaint filed about Amash’s tweets, as these investigations often take many months.
Amash has shown no sign that he is backing down in his occasional criticism of Trump or willingness to challenge him, including supporting an independent investigation of Russian hacking of the 2016 election.
Scavino, however, has been more careful in his tweets, the Office of Special Counsel said in its letter to CREW.
“A review of Mr. Scavino’s personal Twitter account since that time did not reveal any new violations,” the letter from the agency said.