Trump reportedly claimed to be 'in charge of the Hatch Act'

(Image credit: NICHOLAS KAMM/Getty Images)

published 22 October 2019

President Trump makes the rules. All of them.

Trump went after the Emoluments Clause on Monday, calling the Constitutional rule that bars presidents from profiting from their office "phony." But before that, he reportedly tried to ditch another major rule that bars executive malfeasance, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Back before his June rally in Orlando, Trump was pushing to bring Cabinet officials along to the event, which would launch his 2020 campaign, people present during the conversation tell the Journal. But Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney reportedly warned Trump against it, telling him it could result in violations of the Hatch Act, which bars executive branch employees from engaging in certain political activities. Cabinet officials and reelection launch rallies would likely fall under that designation.

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But Trump reportedly didn't care, telling Mulvaney "I'm in charge of the Hatch Act" while surrounded by other top aides. He then called Mulvaney "weak," the people in the room tell the Journal. While it doesn't appear Trump actually said he'd listened to Mulvaney's suggestion, he did eventually drop the idea of bringing his Cabinet to the rally. Read more about Trump's rally-filled campaign at The Wall Street Journal.

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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.

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