If nepotism is illegal, how is Trump getting away with it?
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I see it’s not illegal in the private sector…guess I have to look further because the government definitely isn’t in the private sector!
Yeah in the private sector, people hire their relatives all the time. For government, that’s why there are civil service exams and lists – to prevent nepotismm or at least to help prevent it.
That’s my question. How is he getting away with hiring family members who are totally unqualified for their positions?
Probably because the president can appoint people that he wants. It’s not typical government civil service, which is a different matter.
According to that law, “A public official may not appoint, employ, promote, advance, or advocate for appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement, in or to a civilian position in the agency in which he is serving or over which he exercises jurisdiction or control any individual who is a relative of the public official.”
The Kennedy’s and the Clinton’s have both been under fire for the same thing.
http://time.com/4574971/donald-trump-transition-jared-kushner-legal-anti-nepotism-law/
*For me locally, this would mean my husband could not even apply for any city job, or any affiliated job the city oversees, without violating the law. Seems reasonable.
At least Kennedy and Clinton were hiring competent people. The Kennedys came from decades and decades of political immersion.
@Dutchess_III Legal experts are divided on how to apply this anti-nepotism statute. Some claim U.S. Code Title 3 gives Trump some leeway in tapping people — and possibly family members — to “serve at the pleasure of the president” on the White House staff, because the anti-nepotism law applies to federal agencies and not the White House.
“She said that JFK, a Democrat, had named Henry Cabot Lodge, a Republican he had defeated for a Massachusetts Senate seat in 1952, as U.S. ambassador to Vietnam because JFK was so doubtful of military success there.”.
Just because they know the tricks doesn’t mean they should be played. But it’s a game, I just don’t believe the elite should rule the world.
They shouldn’t….but they do.
@Dutchess_III Tbh, that’s one of the things I’m really enjoying about the current political climate, people like Ocasio-Cortez are getting the chance to make a difference.
She started her campaign while bartending. That’s about as far from elitist as it gets, which is pretty neat- to some people, myself included.
As has been mentioned there is a federal law against nepotism. And as @KNOWITALL accurately cited, it states the restrictions. The rub comes from the part of the description that reads ”...in or to a civilian position in the agency”. As has been mentioned, JFK appointed his brother as AG and his BIL to head the Peace Corps. But that was before the nepotism rules were written. It was, in fact, the event that made congress decide to create the nepotism law (5USC3110). Then you had Bill Clinton that appointed Hillary to head a health care task force. This was challenged and a DC court ruled it was okay. Judge Laurence Silberman reasoned that the White House is not an “agency” so the rule doesn’t apply. The POTUS can’t appoint a relative to be AG or head of the FBI or something else that falls under the Executive Branch, but can appoint a relative to be an assistant or adviser or to be a part of the WH staff. So Trump is just following along with that reasoning.
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