Summary
The Senate confirmed President Biden’s David Huitema as head of the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) in a 50-46 vote, securing his five-year term before the Republican-led administration of President-elect Donald Trump begins.
The OGE has been without a director for over a year, and Huitema’s appointment ensures the office is staffed to oversee the critical presidential transition process.
However, concerns remain, as Trump could fire Huitema or bypass ethics protocols for key appointees.
Ethics groups applauded the confirmation but warned of significant challenges ahead under Trump’s leadership.
Problem: the Americans have an actual czar now, and an “ethics czar” will not stop him
I will never stop despising everyone who refers to any American official as a “Tsar”
It’s a word that means things, un-American and anti-democratic things, shut the hell up “journalists.”
Good news: Man standing in direct path of avalanche puts on snow shoes
So… What’s his job exactly? To tell Trump “that’s not ethical” and be promptly ignored?
The executive branch ethics program works to prevent financial conflicts of interest to help ensure government decisions are made free from personal financial bias.
https://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/about_what-we-do
Since it went so well last time Trump was president, it’s just another virtue signal for him to wipe some more shit on.
Kinda weird to instate this as an advisory body instead of just making self-management of investments for anyone in Congress illegal. Everyone in finance has to do that because of the clear conflict of interest. The people making the laws and financial regulations seemingly do not because their above it (even tho their very clearly enriching themselves).
Great.
Is there anything realistically stopping him from being fired?
Norms and decency, so no.
He doesn’t need to be fired, he’ll just be ignored and marginalized.
Trump won’t ignore him, but he will fire him.
Trump has a pathological need to tell everyone what a big boy he is and he makes his own decisions, because he needs external affirmation. Firing Huitema will get him applause from the shit-flingers so of course he’ll do it.
Nope.
This guy is either going to be busy as hell or just sitting back because he won’t be able to stop it. Aught to be interesting where he falls.
How cute…Warren thinks this guy will have a job 30 seconds after Trump’s coronation.
They should have named it department of government ethics.
