Politico: Trump ethics watchdog moves to allow anonymous gifts to legal defense funds
The U.S. Office of Government Ethics has quietly reversed its own internal policy prohibiting anonymous donations from lobbyists to White House staffers who have legal defense funds.
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In an interview, Shaub said that given the political environment he anticipated questions about the rules surrounding legal defense funds would be front and center — no matter who won the White House.
“I was worried they’d read the [1993] opinion and think it’s valid,” he said of the guidance that allowed for anonymous donations from lobbyists.
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“It’s very depressing,” Shaub said. “It’s unseemly for the ethics office to be doing something sneaky like that.”