In complaint Thursday, the watchdog Protect the Public’s Trust (PPT) alleged that officials in Joe Biden’s White House and Small Business Administration (SBA) violated a law preventing employees of the government from engaging in specific forms of political activity.
PPT lodged a complaint with the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), accusing officials of engaging in political activity to promote Biden while undermining President Trump, in violation of the Hatch Act. The complaint alleges that Biden administration officials from the White House and SBA violated the act by using the term “MAGA,” which is Trump's campaign slogan and an acronym for “Make America Great Again.”
The complaint as well as over 2,300 pages of emails received by PPT from a public records request to the SBA were exclusively attained by The Daily Caller News Foundation.
According to guidelines outlined by the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), federal employees are prohibited from using their email account or social media to distribute, send, or forward content that advocates for or against a partisan political party, candidate for partisan political office, or partisan political group. Additionally, they are barred from sending or forwarding partisan political emails to others while on duty or in the workplace.
However, in January 2023, White House Senior Communications Assistant Brianna Stonick sent an email titled “Talking Points: House Republican MAGA Economic Plan” to four other White House employees. The email contained talking points and a fact sheet, both of which were completely redacted.
A group of SBA employees also appears to have received the emails, as the agency's communications director, Terrence Clark, forwarded it to the address “talkers@sba.gov,” according to the documents obtained.
According to the OSC, penalties for violating the Hatch Act can include “removal from federal service” and a fine of up to $1,000. PPT's complaint requests an immediate investigation into the alleged violations by the aforementioned officials, as well as penalties for their actions.
Read the emails here.
Read more here (source): The Daily Caller
