White House refuses to act against law-breaking Kellyanne Conway

Senior Trump administration aide Kellyanne Conway twice broke federal law. In response, the Trump administration is denying the findings, issued by the U.S. Office of the Special Counsel (OSC), and has refused any further action.

A report from OSC said that when Conway appeared on national television in November and December of 2017, she “impermissibly mixed official government business with political views about candidates in the Alabama special election.”

Conway violated the Hatch Act, which says that government officials should not be involved in political activity. She appeared on television in her capacity as a White House official and made political statements.

On “Fox & Friends” and on CNN’s “New Day,” Conway attacked Doug Jones, then the Democratic candidate for Senate in Alabama. Sounding like a campaign ad, Conway complained that Jones would be “a vote against tax cuts” and said he was “weak on crime.”

Jones won his race in an upset against Roy Moore, who received backing from Trump and the Republican Party despite credible allegations of pedophilia.

Afterward, special counsel Henry Kerner sent a letter to Trump so he could consider “appropriate disciplinary action.”

The White House made it clear right away they would once again throw ethics and justice out the window, and disregard the findings against Conway.

In a statement, deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley said Conway “did not advocate for or against the election” of a candidate. Instead, denying reality, Gidley said she “simply expressed the President’s obvious position that he have people in the House and Senate who support his agenda.”

Gidley also insisted that Conway showed “her intention and desire to comply with the Hatch Act.”

Conway previously violated ethical norms by using a television appearance to promote Ivanka Trump’s fashion line while appearing in her capacity as a White House aide.

The Trump administration isn’t interested in the rules, the law, or ethical custom. It’s a worldview that excuses the behavior of Trump himself, his cabinet secretaries, his top aides and family members, and beyond.

In their view, no matter who impartially finds they have violated the law and the public trust, their actions will always be excused and swept under the rug. It is an atmosphere where corruption is allowed to thrive and fester, at the public’s expense.