The Washington Post Quotes Trevor Potter on Ethics Warnings Concerning Trump Cabinet Confirmations

Incoming White House chief of staff Reince Priebus on January 8th said confirmation hearings for President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet ought to proceed as scheduled.  “This is unprecedented,” said Trevor Potter, former chairman of the Federal Election Commission who has served as counsel to several Republican presidential candidates and Cabinet nominees in the past. “This suggests that there has been a real breakdown between the transition and the Office of Government Ethics.”  Mr. Potter also heads the Political Law Group at Caplin & Drysdale.

The packed schedule, similar to those for nominees of George W. Bush and Barack Obama, was orchestrated by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and the Trump team.  McConnell’s office declined to respond to warnings by Walter M. Shaub Jr., director of the Office of Government Ethics, who said in a letter released Friday the current confirmation calendar is “of great concern to me” because nominees have not completed a required ethics review before their hearings.

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Excerpt taken from the article “Ethics Official Warns Against Confirmations Before Reviews Are Complete” by Ed O'Keefe and Sean Sullivan for The Washington Post.