Ethics Complaint Filed Against Sarah Huckabee Sanders Over Call for Firing
Did Huckabee Sanders Break the Law?
Sarah Huckabee Sanders may be facing an ethics review after calling for the firing of an ESPN reporter who said President Donald Trump is a white supremacist. The White House press secretary from the podium on Wednesday responded to a reporter’s question asking for comment on Monday’s series of tweets posted by Jemele Hill. Huckabee Sanders said Hill’s remarks are a “fireable offense,” and doubled down on those remarks again Friday.
An anti-Trump Super PAC, The Democratic Coalition, filed a complaint with the United States Office of Government Ethics.
I just filed this Ethics Complaint on Trump Press Sec Sarah Huckabee Sanders for saying Jamele Hill should be fired from ESPN. #FireSarah pic.twitter.com/RTZlsZrUH9
— Scott Dworkin (@funder) September 15, 2017
“When Sarah Huckabee Sanders called for Jemele Hill to be fired by ESPN, she crossed the line and put herself in dubious legal territory,†Democratic Coalition Chairman Jon Cooper said in a statement to TheWrap.
“For Sanders to publicly call for the dismissal of a Trump critic is bizarre and disturbing, to say the least,†Cooper added. “If anyone is to be fired, it should be her.â€
Some have suggested Huckabee Sanders’ remarks may have broken federal law.
Walter Shaub, the former director of the Office of Government Ethics, on Wednesday posted a statute to Twitter:
Interesting law on the books. pic.twitter.com/zpZJp2vQQQ
— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) September 13, 2017
At first Shaub said Huckabee Sanders’ actions were not criminal – but that does not mean they were ethical.
highlights the inappropriateness of using federal authority to influence private employment decisions. Another important norm down the drain
— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) September 13, 2017
But one day later, noting Trump is a political candidate for president, he added this:
Now that he’s a partisan political candidate for President, I’m not so sure this isn’t a violation after all. We’re going to study the issue https://t.co/vPkSN09wNY
— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) September 14, 2017
“Breaking the law is punishable by a fine or up to 15 years in prison, or both,” TheWrap says.
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