U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro
August 25, 2020
CHAIRMAN CASTRO LAUNCHES INVESTIGATION OF THE
U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE’S PARTICIPATION IN THE
REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION
WASHINGTON — Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro
(TX-20), Vice Chair of the House Foreign Affairs
Committee and Chairman of its Oversight and
Investigations Subcommittee, sent a letter
to Deputy Secretary Biegun opening an
investigation and demanding answers on Secretary
Pompeo’s participation in a political party
convention in the course of official government
work, which is a potential violation of federal
regulations, U.S. State Department policy, and the
Hatch Act.
According to multiple reports, Secretary Pompeo
filmed a speech for the Republican National
Convention on August 24, 2020 while he was visiting
Jerusalem on official U.S. government business.
Despite the administration’s claims of lawful
behavior, no legal analysis has been made public.
Instead, the legal analysis that has come to light
shows precisely the opposite.
“The Trump administration and Secretary Pompeo have
shown a gross disregard not only of basic ethics,
but also a blatant willingness to violate federal
law for political gain. Congress has a
responsibility to stand up for the rule of law and
hold them accountable for this corrupt
behavior,” said Chairman Castro. “It’s
absolutely unacceptable that a sitting U.S.
Secretary of State, America’s top diplomat, would
use official taxpayer-funded business to participate
in a political party convention, particularly after
the State Department published guidance that
explicitly prohibits such activity. This action is
part of a pattern of politicization of U.S foreign
policy, for which President Trump was impeached by
the House of Representatives, that undermines
America’s standing in the world. The American people
deserve a full investigation.”
Full text of the letter follows and can be
found
here.
Deputy Secretary Biegun:
I write concerning Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s
decision to speak at a partisan political event, the
Republican National Convention, on August 25, 2020.
It is highly unusual, and likely unprecedented, for
a sitting Secretary of State to speak at a partisan
convention for either of the political parties. It
appears that it may also be illegal.
According to documents obtained by the Foreign
Affairs Committee, it is readily apparent that the
Secretary’s choice to speak at a political
convention may violate the Hatch Act,
government-wide regulations implementing that Act,
and State Department policies, as described
in guidance from the Office of the Legal
Adviser.
[1] This
guidance was circulated to Department employees over
your own signature less than a month ago.
[2] In
furtherance of the constitutionally mandated
obligation to conduct oversight of the State
Department, as well as to determine whether and
legislative action is necessary, to address this
matter, the Subcommittee on Oversight and
Investigations intends to examine this issue
carefully. Accordingly, I seek written answers and
documents as set forth below.
Media reports have revealed that Secretary Pompeo’s
speech was filmed on August 24, 2020 while he was
visiting Jerusalem on official U.S. business. The
State Department has claimed that the speech is
appropriate because Secretary Pompeo did not use his
official title or any State Department resources or
staff, and an unnamed source recently
told McClatchy that “[Pompeo’s] lawyer,
the State Department lawyers, RNC lawyers, White
House lawyers have all worked on his appearance to
make sure it is completely lawful and appropriate.”
[3] The
Secretary, however, has not made any of this
supposed legal analysis public. Instead,
the legal analysis that has come to light shows
precisely the opposite.
In a December 2019 memorandum made available to all
State Department employees, the Office of the Legal
Adviser makes clear that “[t]he Department has a
long-standing policy of limiting participation in
partisan campaigns by its political appointees in
recognition of the need for the U.S. Government to
speak with one voice on foreign policy matters.”
[4] Using
both bold type and italics (lest there be any
confusion), the memo specifically notes that, under
a variety of laws and regulations, including “the
provisions of the Hatch Act . .
. government-wide regulations
implementing that Act, and State Department
policies,” Senate-confirmed political appointees
such as Secretary Pompeo “may not even attend a
political party convention or convention-related
event.”
[5] It
appears incontrovertible that the Secretary’s speech
to the RNC violates this prohibition.
Secretary Pompeo was on official travel – funded on
an apolitical basis by every American taxpayer –
when the speech was pre-recorded and likely will be
on official business when it will be shown at the
RNC. Similarly, he was outside the United
States when the speech was recorded and will be
outside the United States when it airs. This is a
flagrant violation not only of the laws, regulations
and policies summarized in the December 2019
memorandum, but also of the Foreign Affairs Manual,
which prohibits not just State Department employees,
but also their spouses or family members from
“engag[ing] in partisan political activities
abroad.”
[6]
Mr. Deputy Secretary, I applaud the example you set
in your February 18, 2020 email to the State
Department’s entire workforce where you recognized
the prohibition on Senate-confirmed officials
participating in political events like the party
conventions when you wrote: “as a Senate confirmed
Department official, I will be sitting on the
sidelines of the political process this year and
will not be attending any political events, to
include the national conventions.” The Department’s
previous cited legal guidance unambiguously applies
the same standard to the Secretary.
In light of this very serious apparent violation,
and to obtain more information on the underlying
events, I ask that you provide a written response to
the following questions no later than September
1, 2020 and arrange for a briefing with the State
Department by that date:
- What legal
guidance was prepared, by whom, and when,
authorizing Secretary Pompeo’s speech to the
RNC?
- Precisely
which attorneys comprised the “four teams of
lawyers” who reportedly approved the Secretary’s
speech, despite the unambiguous prohibition set
forth in the December 3, 2019 memo from the
Office of the Legal Adviser?
- What
Department of State resources, if any, were used
to organize this event, including
transportation, coordination with the host
government, diplomatic security, and lodging?
For instance, were any State Department
officials—including the U.S. Ambassador to
Israel and our Embassy officials (both in
Jerusalem and Tel Aviv)—involved in securing the
King David Hotel for the site of the speech?
- Were any
Department of State employees, including support
and security staff, present at the location
where the Secretary of State made this address?
If so, what employees were present and what
responsibilities did they carry out?
- Will the
Department of State be incurring all costs
related to airfare to Israel or travel between
countries on this trip? If not, what parts
and/or percentages of the costs will be
reimbursed by outside groups, including the RNC
and the Trump campaign?
- When was the
Department of State first made aware of the
Secretary’s intention to make this address from
Jerusalem while on a trip abroad?
- Has the
Government of Israel or any of its officials
raised any concerns about the partisan nature of
this speech and how it could impact bipartisan
support for Israel in the United States?
- When did the
Department of State first start planning this
trip to the region? Did the Department of State
initiate the trip to Israel? Did Secretary of
State Pompeo or any of his staff members ask the
Government of Israel to host him in Jerusalem on
this date?
- Has the trip
itinerary changed in any way to accommodate the
Secretary’s decision to make this address from
Jerusalem?
- Will you be
making any referrals to the Department of State
Office of Inspector General or the U.S. Office
of the Special Counsel regarding these actions
and violations of the Hatch Act and Department
policy?
In addition, to assist the Subcommittee in
investigating whether any legislative actions are
needed, including strengthening the effectiveness of
the Hatch Act, I ask you provide the following
documents to me by September 10, 2020:
- Any and all
records prepared by or sent to or from the
Office of the Legal Adviser on or after December
3, 2019 regarding restrictions on political
activities by Secretary Pompeo or Presidential
Appointees or Political Appointees; and
- A list of
expenditures from the trip during which
Secretary Pompeo recorded his remarks to the
RNC, including receipts demonstrating that any
expenses incurred by the State Department were
reimbursed by the RNC, Trump’s campaign, or
other outside sponsors.
Given the importance to our democracy in ensuring
that public resources are not used for improper
campaign purposes—a principle that is particularly
important in the conduct of the Nation’s foreign
policy—I look forward to working with you to address
this important issue.
U.S.
Rep. Eliot L. Engel
August 24, 2020
Engel: Internal State Department
Documents Show Pompeo RNC Speech Apparently
Violates Legal Restrictions & His Own
Instructions to Department Personnel
Bronx, NY—Representative
Eliot L. Engel, Chairman of the House
Committee on Foreign Affairs, today announced
that the Committee has obtained two internal
State Department documents showing clearly
that Secretary Pompeo’s upcoming speech to the
Republican National Convention (RNC) will
violate legal restrictions on political
activities, according to a longstanding
interpretation by State Department lawyers
that Mr. Pompeo himself reiterated to
Department employees just last month.
A December 2019 memorandum from the State
Department Office of the Legal Adviser, which
reportedly remained posted on the Department’s
internal ethics website Sunday night,
even after
the announcement of Secretary Pompeo’s
upcoming speech to the RNC, states
unequivocally that political appointees such
as Secretary Pompeo are prohibited from
“[e]ngag[ing] in political activity in concert
with a partisan candidate, political party, or
partisan political group.” The memo from
the Office of the Legal Adviser goes on to say
that “
Senate-confirmed
Presidential appointees may not
even attend a
political party convention or
convention-related event” (emphasis in
original).
Just last
month, in a cable to every State Department
office and diplomatic post that went out
with his own signature, Secretary Pompeo
reiterated this guidance to all Department
personnel.
Secretary Pompeo’s decision to use this week’s
taxpayer-funded official diplomatic trip as a
venue for his RNC speech also violates
decades-old rules in the
State
Department’s Foreign Affairs Manual,
which prohibit not just State Department
employees, but also their spouses or family
members from “engag[ing] in partisan political
activities abroad.”
“I take a back seat to no one in my support
for a strong U.S.-Israel relationship. I
support any Secretary of State visiting Israel
and will stand with any
administration—Republican or
Democratic—seeking to bolster the ties between
our two countries and deepen the friendship
between our peoples. But, once again, the
rules go out the window for Secretary Pompeo
when they get in the way of serving his
political interests and Donald Trump. Mr.
Pompeo should show real respect for American
law, diplomacy, and diplomats, and should
follow his own guidance, cancel the speech,
and watch the RNC from his hotel room after
the workday is done,” said Chairman Engel.
A December 3,
2019 memorandum from the Office of the Legal
Adviser to the
Department’s presidential and political
appointees specifically details a number of
prohibited activities. The list of
prohibitions makes clear that Secretary
Pompeo’s participation in a political party
convention clearly runs afoul of guidance that
applies even to the Department’s most senior,
Senate-confirmed officials, as shown in the
following excerpts from the memorandum (all
emphases in the original):
Prohibited
Political Activities
You
may not: […]
Engage in political activity in concert with a
partisan candidate, political party, or
partisan political group. This
restriction covers a range of activities, such
as:
- Endorsement,
solicitation of votes, dissemination of
campaign literature or online campaign
content
- Providing
policy guidance to a candidate, party, or
partisan group
- Hold any
position in a partisan campaign, political
party, or partisan political group, or
seek such a position
- Serve as
a delegate, alternate, or proxy to a
political party convention. Senate-confirmed
Presidential appointees may
not even attend a
political party convention or
convention-related event
- Work at
the polls on behalf of a partisan
candidate, political party, or partisan
political group by acting as a checker,
challenger, or watcher, or in a similar
partisan position
- Drive
voters in a private vehicle to polling
places for a partisan candidate, political
party, or partisan political group
- Speak
for or against a partisan candidate,
political party, or partisan political
group at a convention, rally, or similar
gathering sponsored by such entities, or
at any other gathering if the address is
given in concert with such entities
- Take any
other active role in the political
campaign of a partisan candidate or a
candidate for political party office
On July
24, 2020, Secretary Pompeo sent a cable to
all State Department personnel in
the United States and around the world,
referring specifically to the December
memorandum, and stating, “It is important that
the Department’s employees do not improperly
engage the Department of State in the
political process, and that they adhere to the
Hatch Act and Department policies in their own
political activities.”
The December
3, 2019 memorandum can be found here.
The
July 24, 2020 cable can be found here.
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