John,
The Hatch Act made headlines throughout the Trump presidency, because numerous Trump administration officials—Kellyanne Conway most infamously—just could not stop violating it, repeatedly using their official positions in order to boost Trump and other Republicans’ campaigns. Altogether, it was a wholesale effort to illegally co-opt the powers of government to get Trump re-elected.
But violating the Hatch Act can also be a crime. Specifically, it’s a crime for federal officials to use their official authority to interfere with or affect the election of a candidate for federal office.
And that appears to be exactly what then-Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf and then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo did when participating in events planned for the 2020 Republican National Convention. There’s also evidence that Trump may have used his official authority to effectuate Wolf and Pompeo doing these events, in violation of federal law.
That means the Department of Justice must act to investigate and hold them all accountable. We’ve filed a complaint calling for a full investigation—because no one is above the law. Read the full complaint here—and then share on Facebook, Twitter, or by forwarding this email.
Thank you,
Donald Sherman
Vice President and Chief Counsel, CREW
