Government ethics office recommends investigation into Kellyanne Conway's Ivanka Trump fashion 'commercial'

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February 14, 2017 9:48 PM

OGE recommended the White House investigate and potentially bring disciplinary action against Kellyanne Conway for her endorsement of Ivanka Trump's brand.

Kellyanne Conway during a meeting at the White House.

The independent federal-government watchdog on Tuesday recommended the White House investigate and potentially bring disciplinary action against Kellyanne Conway, President Donald Trump's counselor, for her recent on-air endorsement of Ivanka Trump's fashion line.

In a letter to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Office of Government Ethics Director Walter Shaub said Conway may have misused her position when she appeared on Fox News and appealed to viewers to "go buy Ivanka's stuff," saying she was "going to give a free commercial here. Go buy it today, everybody."

"Under the present circumstances, there is strong reason to believe that Ms. Conway has violated the Standards of Conduct and that disciplinary action is warranted," Shaub wrote, noting that she appeared onscreen between the White House official seal and the American flag.

The OGE director said all White House staff had received initial ethics training before Conway made her comments, and he said that "executive branch officials should use the authority entrusted to them for the benefit of the American people and not for private profit."

"These facts, if true, would establish a clear violation of the prohibition against misuse of position," Shaub continued. "I note that OGE's regulation on misuse of position offers as an example the hypothetical case of a Presidential appointee appearing in a television commercial to promote a product. Ms. Conway's actions track that example almost exactly. Therefore, I recommend that the White House investigate Ms. Conway's actions and consider taking disciplinary action against her."

Shaub also said that despite White House press secretary Sean Spicer's assertion that Trump had "counseled" Conway, the OGE had "not yet received notification of any disciplinary or other corrective action against Ms. Conway."

In their initial letter to the OGE director, the ranking committee members said there would be an inherent conflict of interest with any investigation into Conway's endorsement, as the president is in charge of taking disciplinary action against White House staff.

Despite the bipartisan condemnation from members of the oversight committee, Conway appears to maintain her support from the White House.

Conway appeared to joke about Spicer's comment in a tweet last week.

Read the full letter from the OGE:

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