11 votes

US President Donald Trump revokes rule preventing White House staff from lobbying

10 comments

  1. nacho
    Link
    The whole idea that this isn't law, so it can't be unilaterally revoked shows how broken the current US system is. Legislators need to do their jobs so the executive and judicial branches aren't...

    The whole idea that this isn't law, so it can't be unilaterally revoked shows how broken the current US system is.

    Legislators need to do their jobs so the executive and judicial branches aren't forced to (not) do it in their interpretations of the code that exists.

    It remains to be seen whether or not a new Congress wishes to fix these things rapidly after what the last four years have shown. I'm not super hopeful, but one can always dream that this is typical "First 100 days in office" stuff you can do to pad effectiveness and start rebuilding trust by legally holding yourself to basic standards.

    9 votes
  2. [6]
    JXM
    Link
    Okay, but can't Biden just undo it and ban them again?

    Okay, but can't Biden just undo it and ban them again?

    4 votes
    1. [3]
      skybrian
      Link Parent
      It’s not a law. It’s a pledge signed by administration officials that goes beyond the law’s requirements. I don’t think Biden can make them sign anything? But, Biden’s new ethics rules are...

      It’s not a law. It’s a pledge signed by administration officials that goes beyond the law’s requirements. I don’t think Biden can make them sign anything?

      But, Biden’s new ethics rules are apparently pretty good.

      11 votes
      1. [2]
        JXM
        Link Parent
        Can he not just issue an executive order saying "if you work or worked in the White House, no lobbying"? If Trump can do it, why can't Biden just do it too? (Seriously asking - I don't fully...

        Can he not just issue an executive order saying "if you work or worked in the White House, no lobbying"? If Trump can do it, why can't Biden just do it too?

        (Seriously asking - I don't fully understand the limits/power of Executive Orders)

        5 votes
        1. skybrian
          Link Parent
          It's like any other employer. Biden can require certain things as a condition of employment and employees agree to it if they want the job. But Trump's employees are already gone so they don't...

          It's like any other employer. Biden can require certain things as a condition of employment and employees agree to it if they want the job. But Trump's employees are already gone so they don't need to agree to anything.

          3 votes
    2. stu2b50
      Link Parent
      Nothing. According to the article above, he is

      Nothing. According to the article above, he is

      President-elect Joe Biden is reported to have plans to issue his own executive order tackling ethics standards at the White House soon after he enters office. His plan, according to The Washington Post, is expected to be more strict than the ethics rules put in place during the Trump and Obama administrations.

      8 votes
    3. andre
      Link Parent
      That would require politicians to put the prosperity of the country above their donors.

      That would require politicians to put the prosperity of the country above their donors.

      1 vote
  3. boredop
    Link
    When this news broke late on Trump's last night in office, I thought about how some of his fans really believed the "drain the swamp" BS. The message to them reminded me of Johnny Rotten's...

    When this news broke late on Trump's last night in office, I thought about how some of his fans really believed the "drain the swamp" BS. The message to them reminded me of Johnny Rotten's rhetorical question to the audience at the end of the last Sex Pistols concert in 1978: "Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?"

    4 votes
  4. [2]
    cmccabe
    Link

    Shortly after he entered office, Trump signed an executive order that barred appointees from any lobbying related to their agency for five years, in addition to a lifetime ban on lobbying for a foreign government. Every Trump appointee was required to sign a pledge agreeing to those rules. But in a last-minute move early Wednesday, Trump reversed the order and allowed the revolving door in Washington to continue swinging.

    The White House did not offer any justification for the reversal in the executive order released to the public.

    3 votes
    1. Eabryt
      Link Parent
      The justification is that suddenly it's his staff that need jobs. I think the initial EO was one of the few things that people one both sides of the aisle could point to as being a good thing,...

      The justification is that suddenly it's his staff that need jobs.

      I think the initial EO was one of the few things that people one both sides of the aisle could point to as being a good thing, shouldn't be surprising that it is now gone.

      6 votes