A government watchdog group, the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT), has lodged a formal complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) against several Democratic members of Congress. The complaint alleges that these lawmakers have been using official government resources for political campaign purposes, in violation of congressional ethics codes. The nonprofit watchdog group argues that this behavior advantages the members politically, as it gives them a wider audience and lends their messages an ‘official’ credibility.
Among the list of alleged transgressors are former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Cori Bush, Jamaal Bowman, and others. The complaint states that using sanctioned government platforms or resources to spread political messages further benefits these members, as it reaches a broader and less partisan audience than their campaign platforms would. FACT contends that these actions violate federal law and House ethics rules, which prohibit the use of official resources for campaign or political purposes.
According to the complaint, an “official resource” includes anything funded by taxpayers, such as government buildings and House offices, a member’s official website and social media accounts, as well as photographs and video from the House floor or committee proceedings. The Committee on Ethics memo from July 2018 is cited, which explicitly states that a member’s campaign social media account should not interact with or promote posts from an official social media account.
What exacerbates the situation, the complaint argues, is the ease of proving these violations. Many of them are published by the members themselves on public-facing platforms like Twitter, making the evidence readily accessible. FACT points out that the OCE has previously identified this behavior as ethics violations in the past but has failed to enforce them. The OCE was established in 2008 as an independent evaluator to expose ethics violations, filling the gap left by the House Ethics Committee’s reluctance to impose penalties against fellow members.
While the ultimate punishment for violations lies with the House Ethics Committee, the role of the OCE is to bring ethical transgressions and relevant facts and laws to the attention of the public and the Ethics Committee. The complaint emphasizes that the OCE should act on behalf of the public and maintain its independence, rather than following the inaction of the Ethics Committee.
It is important to note that these allegations have not yet been proven, and the accused members have not responded to the complaint. The OCE will review the complaint and determine if further action is necessary. As this story develops, it sheds light on the ongoing debate surrounding the use of government resources for personal or political gain, highlighting the need for accountability and adherence to ethical standards in Congress.
