Bondi rescinds policy banning some DOJ employees from attending partisan events
Attorney General Pam Bondi He rescinded a policy at the Justice Department that barred political appointees from attending campaign events or fundraisers, according to a memo seen by CBS News on Wednesday.
The move eliminates restrictions previously imposed by former Attorney General Merrick Garland starting in 2022.
Federal employees are currently subject to restrictions on political activity. Cover ActA law intended to keep the government free from partisan influences.
But before Garland’s policy, political appointees were allowed to participate in certain partisan events in their personal capacity with department approval. Under Garland’s 2022 changes, political appointees are barred from attending any partisan political events in any capacity, even on Election Day.
Its policy also prohibited politically appointed department officials from attending campaign events featuring immediate family members running for office. Bondi’s new declaration will once again allow political appointees to participate in such events.
Garland tightened policy surrounding political events after the Office of Special Counsel, a government agency that enforces the Hatch Act, opened an investigation into whether then-Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins violated the law by attending a Democratic fundraiser that included First Lady Jill Biden.
Rollins later was forced to resign He was removed from his position amid investigations into his conduct by both the Justice Department inspector general and the Office of Special Counsel. The inspector general found that he not only attended the fundraiser but also engaged in a wide range of unethical behavior, including making false statements during his meeting with the office. abuse one’s position in many other ways.
“The Hatch Act continues to govern the conduct of Department employees, including the Department’s political appointees. There is nothing in the Attorney General’s memo to suggest otherwise,” a Justice Department official said.
The official said the attorney general “expects full compliance with the Hatch Act from political appointees, and as the memo makes clear at multiple points, if it is unclear whether an employee’s course of conduct would violate the Act, employees (including political appointees) are encouraged to seek advice and guidance from career ethics officials within their constituents.”
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