Kellyanne Conway broke federal law twice last year by advocating against the Democratic candidate for the Alabama Senate special election, a government investigative agency announced Tuesday.Conway, who serves as a special counselor to President Donald Trump, violated the Hatch Act by attacking Democrat Doug Jones in two TV interviews, the U.S. Office of Special Counsel found in a report released Tuesday. The Hatch Act bans most executive branch employees from campaigning.The first violation occurred on Nov. 20, when Conway appeared on Fox News’ "Fox and Friends" and gave an “implied endorsement” of the Republican candidate Roy Moore, according to the report.“Doug Jones in Alabama, folks, don't be fooled,” Conway told the cable show. “He will be a vote against tax cuts. He is weak on crime. Weak on borders. He is strong on raising your taxes. He is terrible for property owners. Doug Jones is a doctrinaire liberal, which is why he is not saying anything and why the media are trying to boost him.”
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Then, on Dec. 6, Conway showed up on CNN’s "New Day" and attacked Jones, while defending Moore from allegations that he’d sexually molested a 14-year-old girl. At the time, CNN’s Chris Cuomo reminded Conway, “You've got to be careful about the Hatch Act.”Despite Conway’s comments, Jones ultimately won the Senate seat.Both violations occurred after Conway “received significant training on Hatch Act prohibitions,” according to a press release that accompanied the Office of Special Counsel report. The OSC says Conway didn’t respond to the report’s allegations when the office asked her for comment, and so the report was delivered to Trump for “appropriate disciplinary action.”White House press secretary Hogan Gidley disputed the findings in Politico:
Cover image: White House adviser Kellyanne Conway is interviewed during the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Gaylord National Resort in Oxon Hill, Md., on February 23, 2018. (Photo By Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)Kellyanne Conway did not advocate for or against the election of any particular candidate. She simply expressed the president’s obvious position that he have people in the House and Senate who support his agenda. In fact, Kellyanne’s statements actually show her intention and desire to comply with the Hatch Act — as she twice declined to respond to the host’s specific invitation to encourage Alabamians to vote for the Republican.