White House Moves to Block Ethics Inquiry Into Ex-Lobbyists on Payroll

[fountainofyouth]

Source: New York Times

The Trump administration, in a significant escalation of its clash with the government's top ethics watchdog, has moved to block an effort to disclose the names of former lobbyists who have been granted waivers to work in the White House or federal agencies.

The latest conflict came in recent days when the White House, in a highly unusual move, sent a letter to Walter M. Shaub Jr., the head of the Office of Government Ethics, asking him to withdraw a request he had sent to every federal agency for copies of the waivers. In the letter, the administration challenged his legal authority to demand the information.

Dozens of former lobbyists and industry lawyers are working in the Trump administration, which has hired them at a much higher rate than the previous administration. Keeping the waivers confidential would make it impossible to know whether any such officials are violating federal ethics rules or have been given a pass to ignore them.

Mr. Schaub, who is in the final year of a five-year term after being appointed by President Barack Obama, said he had no intention of backing down. "It is an extraordinary thing," Mr. Shaub said of the White House request. "I have never seen anything like it."

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/22/us/politics/trump-white-house-government-ethics-lobbyists.html

[Ligyron]

1. but, but I thought Trump said no more lobbyists?

That was one of his campaign promises as part of his "drain the swamp" stratigery.

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. It's not a swamp now - it's a black hole, from which no information emerges

but it still tears things outside apart.

[Angry Dragon]

8. good one

[bresue]

3. Thank you for sharing! Very informative!

[Achilleaze]

4. Sleazeball republicans don't do ethics

Remember that the very first thing the republicans did on Jan 1, 2017 after stealing control of Congress, was to try and shitcan the ethics office. FAIL. Thank gawd.

But as today's news makes clear, the stanky republican cadre of comrades & cronies has never given up their soul-twisted, anti-American WAR ON ETHICS AND MORALITY.

NYT story from Jan. 2, 2017:

With No Warning, House Republicans Vote
to Gut Independent Ethics Office

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/02/us/politics/with-no-warning-house-republicans-vote-to-hobble-independent-ethics-office.html

[gordianot]

5. When you argue against "political correctness" while simultaneously attacking ethics means one thing

You have no ethical standards.

[dchill]

6. K&R.

[tclambert]

7. Protect the Swamp! Protect the Swamp!

(Almost makes Trump sound like an environmentalist. But I would never accuse him of being any kind of mentalist.)

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

9. Trump drained the swamp

and hired its slimiest creatures.

[TomCADem]

10. Chaffetz calls on ethics head to testify day after chief criticized Trump

Remember Republicans in Congress are going to attack Shaub for doing his job as they did back in January.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/01/13/chaffetz-calls-on-ethics-head-to-testify-day-after-chief-criticized-trump.html

House Republicans, led by Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, have summoned the head of the independent federal ethics office to answer questions about his agency and his public criticism of President-elect Donald Trump's plan to separate from his real estate empire.

Chaffetz, the chairman of the GOP-led House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said he sent a letter Thursday to Walter Shaub Jr., director of the Office of Government Ethics, asking him to appear before lawmakers in a closed-door, transcribed interview.

Shaub is not being subpoenaed, but asked to respond to questions in a setting like a deposition, committee staff said.

"I want to talk about the whole department," Chaffetz said in an interview. "Mr. Shaub has taken a very aggressive stance on issues he's never looked at. He's raised a bunch of eyebrows."