John,
We never thought we would have to analyze the ethics of promoting canned beans, but here we are, thanks to this photo:
After the CEO of Goya strongly endorsed President Trump and the brand was the subject of intense backlash, Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter and senior advisor, took to Twitter to endorse Goya—and likely violate ethics rules in the process.
Yesterday, CREW sent a complaint to the Office of Government Ethics, asking that office to investigate Trump’s apparent violation of the ethics rule prohibiting federal employees from endorsing “any product, service or enterprise.” Read our complaint here, and share on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or by forwarding this email.
Here’s what’s even more disturbing than the ethics violation itself: amid a deadly pandemic, record unemployment, and ongoing protests demanding racial justice, the Trump White House isn’t focused on fixing those problems. Instead, they’re focused on cashing in for themselves and their allies and providing incentives to businesses that help them politically, rather than working to serve the American people.
At the best of times, this endorsement would be unethical. These are far from the best of times, but corruption in the Trump White House is a constant, no matter what is happening in the world.
The White House’s promotion of profit and politics at the expense of everything else is an ethics problem, but more than that, it is a devastating failure of leadership in a time of crisis.
Thank you for standing with us against this corruption,
Noah Bookbinder
Executive Director, CREW
