White House Counselor Kellyanne Conway found to have violated Hatch Act

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway violated the Hatch Act on two occasions, the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) informed the Trump administration.  Appearing in her official capacity, Conway endorsed and advocated against political candidates, the watchdog said, referring its findings to President Donald Trump "for appropriate disciplinary action."

The violations occurred during two television appearances in 2017, one on Fox News's "Fox and Friends," and one on CNN's "New Day." “While the Hatch Act allows federal employees to express their views about candidates and political issues as private citizens, it restricts employees from using their official government positions for partisan political purposes, including by trying to influence partisan elections,” OSC says in its report. “Ms. Conway’s statements during the "Fox & Friends" and "New Day" interviews impermissibly mixed official government business with political views about candidates in the Alabama special election for U.S. Senate."