Image #1: Picture of President Trump in a red hat, distributed by the White House
Image #2: Your chance to buy the red hat from his campaign pic.twitter.com/hehsMRYcyw— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) August 28, 2017
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) doesn’t appear to be thrilled with President Donald Trump‘s new hat. Not what’s written on it, which is a simple USA in white print on a red background, with the Trump name on the back, but its marketing. Turns out they’re not alone, as Trump’s own former head of the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) has expressed his frustration, to put it mildly.
The head covering is available for $40.00 on Trump’s campaign site, and he can be seen modeling it in an official White House photo released on WhiteHouse.gov. More disturbing, he was apparently flaunting his new cap while on a teleconference call with cabinet officials to discuss Hurricane Harvey.
CREW tweeted images of Trump in the hat and a screenshot of the campaign site selling it, with the simple message:
Image #1: Picture of President Trump in a red hat, distributed by the White House
Image #2: Your chance to buy the red hat from his campaign
Former head of the Office of Government Ethics Walter Shaub wasn’t exactly subtle with his reaction.
NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! (Pounds head against desk, breaks desk, pounds head against floor) NO!! The Presidency is not your profit center!!
— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) August 29, 2017
Shaub headed OGE for more than four years. He resigned just last month, telling NPR, “the current situation has made it clear that the ethics program needs to be stronger than it is.” He is now Senior Director of Ethics with the Campaign Legal Center, a non-partisan organization that deals with election-related issues.
Indeed there are laws against government officials using their positions to promote products. Kellyanne Conway, Counselor to the President, notoriously found herself in hot water after promoting Ivanka Trump‘s brand during a television spot, but she did not face discipline. Don’t expect President Trump to face any repercussions over this, as many statutes regarding government employees do not apply to the President or Vice President.
[Image: Official White House photo]
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