OSC must resolve pending Trump administration Hatch Act complaints
OSC must resolve pending Hatch Act complaints
- Thu, Sep 3 2026 at 2:55 PM
Mark,
The Office of Special Counsel has yet to resolve six of CREW’s complaints against senior Trump-appointed officials for violating the Hatch Act. Five of these investigations have been pending for more than 10 months!
The Hatch Act restricts executive branch employees’ partisan political activities and prohibits them from using their official positions to affect the results of an election.
We do not have an ethical government if the most powerful officials are allowed to ignore the law.
That’s why CREW submitted a letter to newly confirmed Special Counsel of OSC Charles Baldis to address the delay in resolving these open investigations, which has coincided with escalating ethics problems from the very same officials subject to these complaints.Top officials set the standard for the rest of the federal workforce. That’s why we’ve taken action against senior Trump administration officials who have violated the Hatch Act—but those cases remain unresolved.
CREW’s complaint against Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has been outstanding for more than a year.
Another four investigations have been pending for more than 10 months relating to partisan comments made by senior Trump appointees, including White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, White House Senior Counselor for Trade and Manufacturing Peter Navarro and former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
And our complaint against White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller has been pending for more than two months.
Since CREW’s complaint against Miller, he has committed additional Hatch Act violations without any apparent consequence, despite the fact that OSC has previously recommended disciplinary action for egregious repeat offenders like first-term Trump administration officials Kellyanne Conway and Lynne Patton.
Meanwhile, Secretary Noem was fired from her role in a DHS corruption scandal and reappointed to a less prominent role, while Navarro has faced calls for investigation into his conduct following allegations that he pressured Department of Defense officials to award $620 million in taxpayer funds to a company tied to a venture capital firm where Donald Trump, Jr. is a partner.
Mark, the American people should have confidence that government officials are looking after their interests, not misusing their position for partisan political gain.
That’s why the OSC needs to ensure that this pattern of illegal conduct to influence our elections, documented in CREW’s complaints, does not continue.
OSC must promptly resolve these Hatch Act complaints to ensure that these abuses do not persist ahead of November’s elections and beyond.
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