Ethics experts have accused some of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet of violating federal law by joining him on the campaign trail to rally for Republican candidates ahead of the midterm elections.
At least nine of Trump’s 15 cabinet secretaries have been accused of violating the Hatch Act —a federal law prohibiting federal employees from engaging in certain partisan political activities in their official capacity — over the past few months, according to The New York Times.
The president and vice president are exempt from restrictions under the 87-year-old law, but it applies to all other civil employees of the executive branch.
Some cabinet members have been accused of using their official government titles while taking part in campaign rallies and activities, with nonprofit groups filing complaints with the Office of Special Counsel to investigate.
If the office deems the Hatch Act has been violated, penalties can range from a formal warning, suspension and demotion, to termination of employment and being blacklisted from future federal jobs.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr were named in a formal complaint brought by Democracy Defenders Fund after they joined Trump at a midterms campaign event in Alaska to rally for GOP Senate candidate Dan Sullivan.
Trump introduced Lutnick and Burgum to the stage by using their official government titles.
Their attendance at the Oct. 13 event raised “serious questions about whether they violated federal laws prohibiting federal employees from using their official authority to influence an election,” the nonprofit said in an Oct. 19 news release.
Carr said he was speaking in a personal capacity, but the nonprofit noted that his remarks “focused on FCC business related to Alaska, including committing to work with Senator Sullivan to get every person in Alaska connected to high-speed internet.”
The Office of Special Counsel declined to comment when reached by The Independent.
“It has long been established that senior administration officials are allowed to discuss current events, policies, and the candidates involved with those policies in order to advance the agenda of the administration,” said White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis.
Elsewhere, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy endorsed Senate candidate Mike Rogers in Michigan and Attorney General Todd Blanche landed in hot water at a New York rally in August when he appeared to endorse the GOP candidate for governor.
The rally was headlined by Trump, with critics saying it was “beyond inappropriate” for the attorney general to attend a party political event. Blanche was also criticized for speaking at the midterms Republican National Convention event in September.
Other Trump cabinet officials have popped up at midterm campaign rallies as the Republicans look set for a difficult Election Day next week.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was accused by the nonprofit Steady State of violating the Hatch Act while stumping for candidates in Kentucky and Iowa.
“According to the lawyers, I’m only here in a personal capacity today,” Hegseth told the crowd, the Iowa Capital Dispatch reported at the time.
The group has also filed a lawsuit and Hatch Act complaints against several government officials over Trump’s controversial taxpayer-funded ads.
“Officials should not be using their titles or taxpayer resources to be involved in political campaigns, yet the Trump administration continues to increase activity that goes against the letter and the spirit of this principle,” Kedric Payne, the head of ethics for the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center, told the Times.
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