"The Trump administration is inviting bribes in order to pay for staffers' legal defense of other crimes," writes Norm Eisen of Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington. (Photo: Defending Our Future/Twitter)
Sep 14, 2017
In a reversal critics described as a "big ethical leap backwards" and an invitation to bribery, the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) has "quietly" overturned internal policy prohibiting White House staffers with legal defense funds from receiving anonymous gifts from lobbyists.
"The Trump administration is inviting bribes in order to pay for staffers' legal defense of other crimes."
--Norm Eisen, CREWPolitico first reported the Trump administration's about-face on Wednesday, which comes just weeks after the resignation of former OGE head Walter Shaub, who said the policy reversal--which was carried out through a few subtle changes to a 1993 policy document--"disgusts" him.
"It's very depressing," Shaub told Politico in an interview. "It's unseemly for the ethics office to be doing something sneaky like that."
"I was hoping it was a technical website glitch," Shaub added on Twitter. "But the acting [OGE] director [David Apol] doesn't feel you deserve any answer, America."
While the changes are superficially minor, they may have deep and far-reaching implications. The "little-noticed" policy move "could help President Donald Trump's aides raise the money they need to pay attorneys as the Russia probe expands," Politico's Darren Samuelsohn observed.
Norm Eisen, the chair of Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington, argued the change is clear-cut evidence that the "Trump administration is inviting bribes in order to pay for staffers' legal defense of other crimes."
"What could be swampier?"
--David Axelrod, CNN
Echoing Eisen, former OGE acting director Marilyn Glynn told Politico: "You can picture a whole army of people with business before the government willing to step in here and make [the debt] go away."
As Common Dreams has reported, Apol--the current OGE director--has been criticized for his "loosey-goosey" ethics views, and has in the past "fought to roll back restrictions."
Given Apol's record--and the Trump White House's continued disregard for even the most basic standards of transparency--commentators were not surprised by the reported policy reversal. Many did, however, take the opportunity to continue ridiculing Trump's campaign promise to "drain the swamp."
\u201cLobbyists now can make anonymous donations to the legal defense funds of WH officials? What could be swampier? https://t.co/nkkq9bPoxN\u201d— David Axelrod (@David Axelrod) 1505354345
\u201cSwamp gets murkier by the day https://t.co/aeD9ZwrTm0\u201d— West Wing Reports (by Paul Brandus) (@West Wing Reports (by Paul Brandus)) 1505388352
\u201cTrump on the campaign trail vs. the Trump administration now. https://t.co/HHZ7qx3XxK\u201d— Adam Smith (@Adam Smith) 1505353556
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
In a reversal critics described as a "big ethical leap backwards" and an invitation to bribery, the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) has "quietly" overturned internal policy prohibiting White House staffers with legal defense funds from receiving anonymous gifts from lobbyists.
"The Trump administration is inviting bribes in order to pay for staffers' legal defense of other crimes."
--Norm Eisen, CREWPolitico first reported the Trump administration's about-face on Wednesday, which comes just weeks after the resignation of former OGE head Walter Shaub, who said the policy reversal--which was carried out through a few subtle changes to a 1993 policy document--"disgusts" him.
"It's very depressing," Shaub told Politico in an interview. "It's unseemly for the ethics office to be doing something sneaky like that."
"I was hoping it was a technical website glitch," Shaub added on Twitter. "But the acting [OGE] director [David Apol] doesn't feel you deserve any answer, America."
While the changes are superficially minor, they may have deep and far-reaching implications. The "little-noticed" policy move "could help President Donald Trump's aides raise the money they need to pay attorneys as the Russia probe expands," Politico's Darren Samuelsohn observed.
Norm Eisen, the chair of Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington, argued the change is clear-cut evidence that the "Trump administration is inviting bribes in order to pay for staffers' legal defense of other crimes."
"What could be swampier?"
--David Axelrod, CNN
Echoing Eisen, former OGE acting director Marilyn Glynn told Politico: "You can picture a whole army of people with business before the government willing to step in here and make [the debt] go away."
As Common Dreams has reported, Apol--the current OGE director--has been criticized for his "loosey-goosey" ethics views, and has in the past "fought to roll back restrictions."
Given Apol's record--and the Trump White House's continued disregard for even the most basic standards of transparency--commentators were not surprised by the reported policy reversal. Many did, however, take the opportunity to continue ridiculing Trump's campaign promise to "drain the swamp."
\u201cLobbyists now can make anonymous donations to the legal defense funds of WH officials? What could be swampier? https://t.co/nkkq9bPoxN\u201d— David Axelrod (@David Axelrod) 1505354345
\u201cSwamp gets murkier by the day https://t.co/aeD9ZwrTm0\u201d— West Wing Reports (by Paul Brandus) (@West Wing Reports (by Paul Brandus)) 1505388352
\u201cTrump on the campaign trail vs. the Trump administration now. https://t.co/HHZ7qx3XxK\u201d— Adam Smith (@Adam Smith) 1505353556
In a reversal critics described as a "big ethical leap backwards" and an invitation to bribery, the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) has "quietly" overturned internal policy prohibiting White House staffers with legal defense funds from receiving anonymous gifts from lobbyists.
"The Trump administration is inviting bribes in order to pay for staffers' legal defense of other crimes."
--Norm Eisen, CREWPolitico first reported the Trump administration's about-face on Wednesday, which comes just weeks after the resignation of former OGE head Walter Shaub, who said the policy reversal--which was carried out through a few subtle changes to a 1993 policy document--"disgusts" him.
"It's very depressing," Shaub told Politico in an interview. "It's unseemly for the ethics office to be doing something sneaky like that."
"I was hoping it was a technical website glitch," Shaub added on Twitter. "But the acting [OGE] director [David Apol] doesn't feel you deserve any answer, America."
While the changes are superficially minor, they may have deep and far-reaching implications. The "little-noticed" policy move "could help President Donald Trump's aides raise the money they need to pay attorneys as the Russia probe expands," Politico's Darren Samuelsohn observed.
Norm Eisen, the chair of Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington, argued the change is clear-cut evidence that the "Trump administration is inviting bribes in order to pay for staffers' legal defense of other crimes."
"What could be swampier?"
--David Axelrod, CNN
Echoing Eisen, former OGE acting director Marilyn Glynn told Politico: "You can picture a whole army of people with business before the government willing to step in here and make [the debt] go away."
As Common Dreams has reported, Apol--the current OGE director--has been criticized for his "loosey-goosey" ethics views, and has in the past "fought to roll back restrictions."
Given Apol's record--and the Trump White House's continued disregard for even the most basic standards of transparency--commentators were not surprised by the reported policy reversal. Many did, however, take the opportunity to continue ridiculing Trump's campaign promise to "drain the swamp."
\u201cLobbyists now can make anonymous donations to the legal defense funds of WH officials? What could be swampier? https://t.co/nkkq9bPoxN\u201d— David Axelrod (@David Axelrod) 1505354345
\u201cSwamp gets murkier by the day https://t.co/aeD9ZwrTm0\u201d— West Wing Reports (by Paul Brandus) (@West Wing Reports (by Paul Brandus)) 1505388352
\u201cTrump on the campaign trail vs. the Trump administration now. https://t.co/HHZ7qx3XxK\u201d— Adam Smith (@Adam Smith) 1505353556
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.