Former President Obama’s ethics chief raised concerns with a tweet from a U.S. government agency that wished Vice President Kamala Harris a happy 57th birthday on Wednesday.
Walter Shaub, the former Obama-appointed director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, responded unfavorably after the Office of Personnel Management tweeted, “Happy Birthday, Madam @VP! We are grateful for everything you do on behalf of federal employees, including leading today’s roundtable to bolster employee rights.”
Happy Birthday, Madam @VP! ? We are grateful for everything you do on behalf of federal employees, including leading today’s roundtable to bolster employee rights pic.twitter.com/Txea76eAo6
— U.S. Office of Personnel Management (@USOPM) October 21, 2021
Shaub said in a tweet it was an “odd use of federal resources” to send a happy birthday message to the vice president.
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“What makes it unseemly for USOPM to be indulging in Trump-style promotion of a politician is that OPM is the agency that is supposed to set an example for federal employees and, wait for it… writes the Hatch Act regulation,” Shaub said in a separate tweet. “It’s not a violation, but it’s a bad ethical tone.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to the OPM for comment but did not hear back in time of publishing.
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Shaub has also been critical of the White House’s handling of the art sales of Hunter Biden, the adult son of President Joe Biden, over concerns of influence peddling, despite an arrangement to keep buyers’ identities secret.
“Is Hunter Biden going to walk around the art show with a blindfold on?” Shaub said. “It just goes to show you the focus isn’t on government ethics. It’s just showing the child of a president can cash in on the presidency.”
