Federal Ethics Watchdog Trolls Trump On Twitter With Impeachment Warning
The United States Office of Government Ethics unleashed a tweetstorm calling out Donald Trump for trying to confuse the public by promising to give his children control of the Trump Organization on Twitter (see below). A few astute mainstream news outlets noticed that Trump’s proposal won’t change anything. The OGE’s tweetstorm provides sarcastic, yet a dead-serious counterpoint to Donald Trump’s attempt at a twitter smokescreen this morning, and a bold, public announcement that they’ve warned Trump’s lawyers about the Constitution’s emoluments clause, which he will violate without full divestiture.
You could say that this tweetstorm was the OGE’s highest minded way that they could deliver a message to the Trump Transition team’s lawyers, similar to dropping fish wrapped in a newspaper on one’s doorstep. In other words, a message that even @realDonaldTrump the troll might understand. The ethics watchdog’s tweets emphasized that the only way the President-elect can remove his massive foreign conflict of interests, would be to divest ownership of most of his properties and Trump brand entirely – not to hand it to his children.
.@realDonaldTrump this divestiture does what handing over control could never have done.
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
.@realDonaldTrump – we told your counsel we'd sing your praises if you divested, we meant it.
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
The OGE didn’t stop there, citing a criminal conflict of interest statute which they advise all presidents not to cross by policy. After all, former Republican President Gerald Ford was the House Minority leader and declared that, “An impeachable offense is whatever a majority of the House of Representatives considers it to be at a given moment in history.”
If Donald Trump ignores the ethics office’s policy, he could become subject to impeachment proceedings because in theory anything that the House of Representatives decides is a crime can be enforced if the Senate agrees.
.@realDonaldTrump this aligns with OGE opinion that POTUS should act as if 18 USC 208 applies. https://t.co/T6nNUPxFwp
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
In case you’re wondering, the memo’s important part reads:
The Department of Justice’s views, with which we agree, are that the President and the Vice President are not legally subject to the restrictions of (1) the conflict of interest laws… and (2) the standards of conduct… but as a matter of policy, the President and the Vice President should conduct themselves as if they were so bound.
It’s also a roadmap to revise all of the applicable ethics laws which could be strengthened by a lame duck Congress, for which we could see bipartisan consensus. This is like giving a copy of the infamous Anarchists Cookbook to Congress, just in case they want a recipe to blow up Trump’s presidency with impeachment charges or cook up some stronger, more enforceable ethics rules at any given time.
The tweetstorm also drew a lot of attention to the OGE’s new ethics rules a year in the making, to further clarify the boundaries of presidents receiving gifts as a public official in minute detail.
It’s safe to conclude that what you can see below is the most ethical tweetstorm of 2016, standing in stark contrast to the President-elect’s 3am ranting, raving, hate and conspiracy mongering on Twitter.
Here are the rest of the federal ethics watchdog’s tweetstorm:
.@realDonaldTrump We can't repeat enough how good this total divestiture will be
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
.@realDonaldTrump Brilliant! Divestiture is good for you, very good for America!
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
.@realDonaldTrump OGE applauds the "total" divestiture decision. Bravo!
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
.@realDonalTrump As we discussed with your counsel, divestiture is the way to resolve these conflicts.
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
.@realDonaldTrump OGE is delighted that you've decided to divest your businesses. Right decision!
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
.@realDonaldTrump Bravo! Only way to resolve these conflicts of interest is to divest . Good call!
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
.@realDonaldTrump – we told your counsel we'd sing your praises if you divested, we meant it.
— U.S. OGE (@OfficeGovEthics) November 30, 2016
