White House Official Violated Law by Calling for Defeat of Michigan Congressman
U.S. Office of Special Counsel says WH Social Media DIrector broke law with tweet targeting U.S. Rep. Amash (R-MI.)
Federal officials say the White House Director of Social Media violated the law by using a Twitter account to call for the defeat of a Michigan member of Congress.
Republican Congressman Justin Amash and the White House have been at odds for months.
Amash is a member of the Freedom Caucus that helped prevent House Republicans from passing their first attempt this year at health care reform.
White House Social Media Director Dan Scavino tweeted in April that Amash was a big liability for the GOP.
Scavino wrote that Amash should be defeated in his next primary election.
The tweet was sent on Scavino’s personal Twitter account but included a picture of him at the White House and noted he was a federal employee.
Now the U.S. Office of Special Counsel has issued a warning that Scavino violated the Hatch Act, which prohibits public officials from using their job to conduct political activity.
The Congressman may also have violated the Act by tweeting back to the White House “Bring it on” and linking the tweet to his campaign web site.
.@realDonaldTrump is bringing auto plants & jobs back to Michigan. @justinamash is a big liability.#TrumpTrain, defeat him in primary.
— Dan Scavino Jr. (@DanScavino) April 1, 2017
Bring it on. I’ll always stand up for liberty, the Constitution & Americans of every background. You can help here: https://t.co/ECxQGXE5XH.
— Justin Amash (@justinamash) April 1, 2017
