Sen. Tom Carper, Delaware Democrat, has asked the U.S. Office of Special Counsel to look into whether a top assistant to President Trump violated the law when the aide called for the defeat of a Republican congressman earlier this month.
Dan Scavino, who runs the White House’s social media efforts, might have violated a law that prohibits federal employees from engaging in certain political activity when he publicly called for the defeat of Rep. Justin Amash earlier this month, Mr. Carper wrote in a letter released Tuesday.
On April 1, Mr. Scavino had tweeted: “@realDonaldTrump is bringing auto plants & jobs back to Michigan. @justinamash is a big liability.#TrumpTrain, defeat him in primary.”
Mr. Carper wrote that while Mr. Scavino used his personal Twitter account, and not his official government account, his “nearly identical Twitter pages could easily create the impression that he is acting in an official capacity when engaging in political activity on his personal account.”
The White House has said Mr. Scavino’s tweet did not violate the Hatch Act, which is the law in question, as the tweet came from his personal account and not his White House account.
“He created an official account upon entering the White House to ensure compliance with the Hatch Act and he has taken the necessary steps to ensure there is a clear distinction between both Twitter accounts,” the White House said in a statement to NBC News earlier this month.
Mr. Carper is a member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. He’s a past chairman of the committee, which is the Senate’s version of the House oversight panel.
Mr. Amash, Michigan Republican and a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, has emerged as a prominent GOP critic of Mr. Trump.
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