Four Cabinet secretaries under scrutiny for their misuse of taxpayer dollars and questionable travel arrangements were reprimanded by the White House after news stories and watchdog investigations raised ethical concerns about the behavior, according to a report.
Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke all attended private meetings with officials from the White House counsel’s office and the Cabinet liaison last month.
The meetings were held after the media reported the secretaries’ spending habits and infighting within at least one agency, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and came at the request of White House chief of staff John Kelly, according to CNN.
Sources told CNN the meetings were designed to provide a “clear message that optics matter.”
The agencies received a set of guidelines from the White House that included advice for government officials, including, “Optics questions: Does the event or travel further the president’s priorities, your department or agency’s mission; or does it appear recreational or entertainment in nature.”
The White House officials also asked the agencies to notify them of ongoing investigators or audits into questionable behavior.
The four Cabinet secretaries have all been the subject of stories regarding their spending and travel habits.
Pruitt has come under fire for his first class travel, as well as his spending of taxpayer dollars to stay at luxury hotels. The EPA inspector general is investigating Pruitt’s travel.
Jahan Wilcox, an EPA spokesman, refuted the characterization of Pruitt’s meeting at the White House.
“This is entirely untrue,” Wilcox said in a statement to CNN. “Administrator Pruitt has regular meetings with a number of officials at the White House. Throughout those meetings, the White House has offered continued support of EPA, to help the Agency succeed in furthering the President’s environmental agenda.”
Carson, meanwhile, found himself the subject of scrutiny after it was reported HUD officials spent $31,000 on a dining room set for Carson’s office last year. Carson denied he was aware of the purchase and canceled the order.
Zinke’s travel habits are also currently under investigation by the Interior Department’s watchdog, as well as the Office of Special Counsel.
An agency spokesperson said the White House’s alleged dressing down of Zinke and other Cabinet secretaries is “such a nothing-burger.”
“Cabinet secretaries and staff meet with the White House constantly about a number of issues to include advancing policy priorities and strategy,” the spokesperson said.
Shulkin, meanwhile, was the subject of an investigation by the Veterans Affairs inspector general over an 11-day trip he and other agency officials took to Europe last year.
According to the report, Shulkin inappropriately accepted tickets to Wimbledon and misused taxpayer dollars. His former chief of staff also altered an email to allow the agency to cover travel for Shulkin’s wife.
“President Trump tasked Secretary Shulkin with reforming the VA so it could better serve the men and women who sacrificed to protect our country,” the VA public affairs office said in a statement to CNN. “Many reforms have already been enacted, many more are still needed, but nothing will distract the President, the Secretary and the Department from finding the best ways to provide care and benefits to our country’s heroes.”
