November 14, 2021: Criminality Started at the Top

11/14/21: Inflation in October hit a 30-year high, 6.2%, year-over-year, the worst since 1990. 

Republicans are having fun blaming President Biden. In fact, Mr. Biden’s poll numbers have declined significantly. Which in the Era of Trump would have meant plenty of presidential whining about “rigged polls.” Currently, 42% of Americans approve of Joe’s performance and 52.7% do not. 

If Biden and Trump faced off again tomorrow, I’m afraid Trump would win – and have a chance to break even more laws and get impeached again. Unless Republicans took control of Congress. 

Then he could break the laws with impunity. 

Again.

 

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IF YOU MISSED the story, because you were standing at the gasoline pump, cursing the cost of a gallon of gas, as you filled the tank on your giant pickup truck or SUV, we have fresh evidence. Whenever Trump got the itch to break the law, he had his underlings break it for him. 

The Office of Special Counsel, whose reason for existence is to keep federal office holders and employees honest, has issued a new report. At least thirteen top Trump administration officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, violated the Hatch Act. That is: They campaigned for the president in 2020, while you and I, the beleaguered taxpayers, paid their salaries. 

For example, as Yahoo!News.com explains, 

The special counsel offered new details about Pompeo’s decision to deliver a speech to the RNC from Israel, which conflicted with State Department policy and violated the Hatch Act.

 

Before his speech, Pompeo quietly approved a change to the State Department’s policy, which “until then had prohibited him and all other political appointees at the State Department from engaging in many partisan political activities, such as addressing a political party convention,” the OSC report says.

 

The change came just days before Pompeo delivered his highly unusual speech from Jerusalem. It applied only to him, saying the secretary of state was “not restricted from addressing a political party convention when requested by or for the President.”

 

“That decision was made against the advice provided to Secretary Pompeo by senior State Department lawyers,” the OSC report says.

 

Also violating the law: Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Craig Wolf, who denied being warned he was violating the law. OSC found Wolf was in fact warned. Another scofflaw was White House aide Kellyanne Conway, who did her best to help Trump get a second term in office, so he could keep asking taxpayer-paid aides to serve his political interests. Also breaking the law in the waning days of the Trump presidency: Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette, U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, White House Director of Strategic Communications Alyssa Farah, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, and Senior Advisor to the President Jared Kushner. 

This should come as no surprise. According to the OSC report, “Some officials in the Trump administration intentionally ignored the law’s requirements and tacitly or expressly approved of senior administration officials violating the law.” In other words, the criminality started at the top.