Group Calls on Office of Special Counsel to Investigate Mulvaney for #MAGA-Hatch Act Violation
Washington, D.C. – Consumer watchdog group Allied Progress has submitted a formal complaint with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) drawing attention to a tweet posted yesterday by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) promoting a statement by its director, Mick Mulvaney, that violates the Hatch Act’s prohibition on political activities by federal employees.
The tweet includes a statement from Mulvaney praising the selection of conservative television personality Larry Kudlow as the new head of Trump’s National Economic Council following the abrupt resignation of Gary Cohn. The statement reads, “I look forward to working with Larry as President Trump continues to unleash economic greatness. #MAGAnomics.”
Just ten days before OMB’s Mulvaney tweet, the OSC “issued updated Hatch Act guidance” specifically prohibiting federal employees from using “hashtags such as #MAGA” on social media “while on duty or in the workplace.”
“The Office of Special Counsel should hold Mulvaney and anyone else involved in the posting of this political statement accountable for violating the Hatch Act – a law designed to keep public servants from engaging in politics while on the job. It should come as no surprise to anyone paying attention that Mulvaney would play fast and loose with the rules. After all, he has brazenly used the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to do favors for the Wall Street special interests that fund his campaigns. It is almost as if he thinks ‘big banks and predatory lenders shouldn’t have to follow the rules and neither should I’,” said Karl Frisch, executive director of Allied Progress.
Read the Allied Progress complaint here (PDF).
BACKGROUND:
- Mulvaney Statement Using #MAGAnomics Hashtag Posted to Twitter: On March 15, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) tweeted Director Mick Mulvaney’s statement praising the selection of Larry Kudlow to lead President Trump’s National Economic Council. Mulvaney stated, “I look forward to working with Larry as President Trump continues to unleash economic greatness. #MAGAnomics.” [Tweet by OMB Press, 03/15/18, accessed 03/15/18]
- U.S. Office of Special Counsel Prohibits Federal Employees from Using #MAGA Hashtags: Ten days before Mulvaney’s tweeted statement using the #MAGAnomics hashtag, the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) “issued updated Hatch Act guidance” specifically prohibiting federal employees from using “hashtags such as #MAGA” on social media. [Press Release, U.S. Office of Special Counsel, 03/05/18]
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