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[WedgeX]

Courtesy the Washington Post.

The director of the independent Office of Government Ethics, who has been the federal government’s most persistent critic of the Trump administration’s approach to ethics, announced Thursday that he is resigning nearly six months before his term is scheduled to end.


Walter M. Shaub Jr. repeatedly challenged the Trump administration, publicly urging President Trump to fully divest from his business empire and chastising a senior Trump adviser for violating ethics rules. His outspokenness drew the ire of administration officials and earned him near-cult status among Trump’s opponents. Fans started a Facebook page in his honor, and his name has occasionally appeared on posters at anti-Trump protests.


Shaub made no reference to those clashes in a resignation letter he submitted Thursday indicating he will step down July 19. Instead, he praised the work of federal ethics officials, pointedly noting their commitment to “protecting the principle that public service is a public trust, requiring employees to place loyalty to the Constitution, the laws, and ethical principles above private gain.

”
In an interview, Shaub said he was not leaving under pressure, adding that no one in the White House or the administration pushed him to leave. But the ethics chief said he felt that he had reached the limit of what he could achieve in this administration, within the current ethics framework.

 

[cameron]

Also on NYT: U.S. Government Ethics Chief Will Resign, Casting Uncertainty Over Agency

“There isn’t much more I could accomplish at the Office of Government Ethics, given the current situation,” Mr. Shaub said. “O.G.E.’s recent experiences have made it clear that the ethics program needs to be strengthened.”

His new position, he said, will allow him to advocate freely for such reforms.

More recently, Mr. Shaub and the administration fought over a routine request by the ethics office for copies of waivers issued to White House appointees to work in the Trump administration. The Office of Management and Budget initially balked at the request, challenging Mr. Shaub’s legal authority even to ask for the information and asking him to withdraw it. After Mr. Shaub fired back with a stern 10-page letter shooting down the argument, the White House backed down.

The White House eventually released the waivers, showing it had granted at least a dozen exemptions for aides to work on policy matters they had handled as lobbyists or to engage with former colleagues in private-sector jobs. Mr. Shaub objected to the fact that many of the waivers were undated and unsigned, and that some gave approvals for acts retroactively.

Mr. Shaub will leave the agency in this month to take up his new position as a senior director for ethics at the Campaign Legal Center in Washington, a nonpartisan group that advocates campaign finance reform and litigates voting rights cases. Mr. Shaub will have more freedom to comment on the government’s ethics program and propose changes to it.

A permanent replacement for Mr. Shaub would require confirmation in the Senate, where Democrats would probably use confirmation hearings to raise grievances about what they see as Mr. Trump’s own potential conflicts of interest.

The White House could also simply leave the position to an acting director indefinitely. Shelley K. Finlayson, the office’s chief of staff, is first in line for the acting director position, but the law governing such vacancies also allows the White House to choose from among the office’s upper ranks.

 

[Volimar]

Looks like Michael Flynn is about to get a job offer.

 

[Sho_Nuff82]

The thought of running that job with this admin is so damn depressing.

 

[Beer Monkey]

Can't have an ethics problem if there's no ethics oversight.

 

[UberTag]

Department might as well no longer exist.
This administration doesn't believe ethics play a role in making America great again.

 

[Beer Monkey]

Department might as well no longer exist.
This administration doesn't believe ethics play a role in making America great again.

Drain the swamp (of checks and balances).

 

[theechrisfox]

Can't blame the guy. Trying to get the current administration to do anything ethical must be like getting swamp fish to walk on uncorrupted land.

 

[norm9]

Useless department in this administration. Maybe they'll bring it back when a new prez is in office.

 

[RPGCrazied]

Well, its not like Trump was being held accountable for anything he does, so this position right now is kind of moot.

 

[jelly]

Don't blame him, can't do anything. Trump admin is accountable to nobody.

 

[Ferrio]

Useless department in this administration. Maybe they'll bring it back when a new prez is in office.

If an ethics office can't exist in the exact presidency it needs to exist then it seems kinda worthless in it's current state.

 

[O Canada Our Home and Native Land]

He made the most ethical decision. Is it ethical to keep drawing a paycheck if you're the ethics chief during a Trump administration? It's an impossible job.

 

[Transhuman]

I don't understand the mindset of the staff that are stepping down. Seems pretty cowardly to quit and leave your office vulnerable to hijacking.

 

[Acerac]

That is not a job I would currently like to hold; I truly can not blame him.

 

[norm9]

If an ethics office can't exist in the exact presidency it needs to exist then it seems kinda worthless in it's current state.

That is true. Not sure if giving them more power would do anything either if the prez can just ignore.

 

[RinsFury]

Ethics no longer exist.

 

[Stinkles]

I don't understand the mindset of the staff that are stepping down. Seems pretty cowardly to quit and leave your office vulnerable to hijacking.

The administration literally ignores them and his resignation has drawn more attention to the problem than he was empowered to do as an employee. I have to say your reaction is extraordinary if you've been following this closely.

There's nothing cowardly about how he has conducted himself or his office.

 

[Turbo Killer]

Don't worry when a dem becomes president next the republicans will wanna bring back this office.

 

[User Name Here]

Ethics no longer exist.

Yup. Can't violate any ethics if there aren't any to violate.

 

[frontovik]

Ethics in government administration? It does not compute.

 

[CopperPuppy]

The White House could also simply leave the position to an acting director indefinitely.

Ding, ding, ding.

 

[Transhuman]

The administration literally ignores them and his resignation has drawn more attention to the problem than he was empowered to do as an employee. I have to say your reaction is extraordinary if you've been following this closely.

There's nothing cowardly about how he has conducted himself or his office.

Even if he was literally able to effect no positive change, a Trump stooge in the Ethics office seems exceedingly worse.

People are going to forget about this tomorrow.

 

[Shoeless]

Very sad to think that the average American Trump supporter now believes ethics get int he way of truly being American, while at the same time refusing to believe that this makes the American value system more in line with a typical "bad guy." Not sure how they manage to resolve that inherent contradiction. How can you be a good guy when you believe in evil practices?

 

[PanicFreak]

 

[GoldenEye 007]

The thought of running that job with this admin is so damn depressing.

Department is toothless anyway. WH is setup on the honor system.

 

[Shard]

So this is an interesting development.

https://twitter.com/CampaignLegal/status/883007849500217344

 

[YourMaster]

If an ethics office can't exist in the exact presidency it needs to exist then it seems kinda worthless in it's current state.

You assume something is wrong with the Office of Government Ethics. I think it is obvious that instead there's a lot wrong with the rest of the democratic system which results in a two-party situation. If you had a proper parliament, or a better functioning congress or senate, such remarks from the ethics office would be sufficient to whip the president into action or even out of office.

However, since the US population has been happy for many decades to have a faulty democratic system, and have no desire to be truly free, are not refusing to vote for any politician that does not promise massive reforms to the entire system, you get what you deserve.

Department is toothless anyway. WH is setup on the honor system.

You could also have proper congressmen and senators, who could function as a counterbalance to the power of the president. You know, the kind that serve the people of the country, not the members of the party.

 

[Netherscourge]

So this is an interesting development.

https://twitter.com/CampaignLegal/status/883007849500217344

Interesting.

If he can't separate Trump from his business interests, he's going to separate Trump's voter base from their illegally drawn districts.

He should team up with Obama on this. That would really piss Trump off.

 

[Xe4]

Department is toothless anyway. WH is setup on the honor system.

It's crazy to see how quick the system fails when you don't have someone interested in honor as the chief.

 

[Horns]

I don't understand the mindset of the staff that are stepping down. Seems pretty cowardly to quit and leave your office vulnerable to hijacking.

His term was up next year. I also don't believe this agency had any regulatory powers. Meaning his agency made suggetions for discipline which could simply be ignored.

 

[boiled goose]

Instead of resigning, couldn't something better be done? Like clear documentation, report submitted to press... Dunno. Resigning seems worthless

 

[Stinkles]

Even if he was literally able to effect no positive change, a Trump stooge in the Ethics office seems exceedingly worse.

People are going to forget about this tomorrow.

More offensive for sure but my point is that it won't practically change from nothing to nothing.

 

[Oersted]

Simply giving up.

The head of the office which was established in reaction to Watergate.