Prof. Richard Painter Quoted by The Guardian About Hatch Act Violations Regarding Government Shut-Down

Professor Richard Painter, S. Walter Richey Professor of Corporate Law, was quoted by The Guardian about possible violations of the Hatch Act, which limits the political activities of government employees. Some agencies reportedly sent emails to employees on Tuesday afternoon faulting Democrats, the “radical left,” and “radical liberals in Congress” for a potential government shutdown at midnight. According to one analysis, the emails appeared to “impose on Democrats the blame for a government shutdown and resulting furloughs of agency employees.” Regarding one particular email sent by the Department of Health and Human Services, it ”has a partisan political goal. This email is both a violation of the Hatch Act and an abuse of government power.” Prof. Painter said, “It’s highly unusual. I’ve never seen anything like it. It suggests there’s a concerted lobbying effort across the government,” he said, using federal email and website systems — which are funded with taxpayer dollars. He said that would also violate U.S. law on lobbying with federal funds. If that’s true, “that’s not what we’re giving you the money for.”