U.S.

Office of Special Counsel

1730 M Street, N.W., Suite 218
Washington, D.C. 20036‐4505

OSC Response to June 11, 2019 Office of White House Counsel letter
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Zachary Kurz, (202) 804-7065; zkurz@osc.gov

WASHINGTON, D.C./June 13, 2019 – The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) respects the Office of
White House Counsel but respectfully disagrees with its position, and will not withdraw its Report sent to the
President today finding numerous Hatch Act violations made by Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway
(OSC File Nos. HA-19-0631 and HA-19-3395).

As a threshold matter, OSC strongly rejects the Office of White House Counsel’s unfortunate
characterization of our Hatch Act Report as tainted by improper considerations. OSC stands by the
professionalism and integrity of its career federal employees who carried out this investigation and compiled
the Report. As a unit, they represent decades of experience enforcing the Hatch Act and have never carried
out their duties in a manner suggesting partisan bias. As dedicated public servants, they take pride in OSC’s
important mission to ensure that the federal workplace is based on merit principles and free from partisan
political influences.

In addition, the Office of White House Counsel’s letter seriously misrepresents the process leading up
to the issuance of this Report. OSC repeatedly attempted to engage with the White House in efforts to bring
Ms. Conway into compliance with the Hatch Act.

The contention that OSC’s Report is legally, factually, and procedurally in error is similarly without
merit. OSC’s findings are well grounded in established legal principles governing Hatch Act enforcement. The
Report accurately reflects the facts and history of this case, and our handling of this matter has been
procedurally sound.

Pursuant to the clear statutory directive and consistent with OSC’s longstanding past practice, we
forwarded our Report to the President. OSC will not be responding to the Office of White House Counsel’s
intrusive demand for our investigative files and other documents. Such requests, including for the “entire
investigation files relating to the Report,” if OSC chooses not to “withdraw and retract its Report,” are wholly
inappropriate. These requests represent a significant encroachment on OSC’s independence. This attempt by
the Counsel’s office to oversee our investigative and enforcement authority introduces a serious perception of
undue influence in an apparent effort to bias the outcome of OSC’s independent investigation.

We appreciate the Office of White House Counsel’s previously stated commitment to ensuring that all
federal employees, including White House staff, are properly trained in abiding by the Hatch Act’s restrictions
on partisan political activity. We also share its stated desire that our offices continue to collaborate in
fostering a culture of compliance at the White House. OSC is fully committed to assisting all federal
employees, including those in the White House, in exercising their First Amendment rights while abiding by
the restrictions imposed by the Hatch Act.

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The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) is an independent federal investigative and prosecutorial agency. Our basic authorities come
from four federal statutes: The Civil Service Reform Act, the Whistleblower Protection Act, the Hatch Act, and the Uniformed Services
Employment & Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). OSC’s primary mission is to safeguard the merit system by protecting federal
employees and applicants from prohibited personnel practices, especially reprisal for whistleblowing, and to serve as a safe channel
for allegations of wrongdoing. For more information, please visit our website at www.osc.gov.