White House Invokes Hatch Act To Deflect Cocaine Questions
Even for this White House, a Thursday response to a logical question left political observers perplexed. The beleaguered press office was asked about the cocaine found last week in the West Wing and whether it could have belonged to President Joe Biden or his son, Hunter.
That question was stated first by former President Donald Trump and then by the White House reporter. They asked deputy press secretary Andrew Bates about the ownership of the illicit drug. The reply was startling.
According to Bates, “I don’t have a response to that because we have to be careful with the Hatch Act.” His only clarification was that he “noticed there does seem to be some increasing frustration coming from that corner in general.”
The mid-level staffer then tried to deflect the query with a rambling statement comparing Biden’s record with that of his predecessor. There was no more mention of the Hatch Act.
The Hatch Act prevents civil servants from engaging in certain political activities. What exactly that had to do with the White House response to cocaine in the West Wing is anybody’s guess.
Speaking with Fox News Digital, Attorney Bradley P. Moss said that he was clueless as to why Bates felt the need to bring up this seemingly unrelated statute.
He explained that he realized there were other substantially more logical responses, including not commenting due to preserving the integrity of the investigation. Still evasive, but it would have more credibility than the Hatch Act.
Richard Painter, a former official under George W. Bush who recently ran for Congress as a Democrat, strongly denounced the shaky response. Asking what that specific law has to do with cocaine, Painter called it “the most ridiculous invocation of the Hatch Act I’ve ever heard.”
The former ethics chief who previously published articles on the law said that even if a Biden staffer were “high as a kite,” the Hatch Act would have no relevance.
Online responses to this odd defense from the administration were notably brutal.
Conservative commentator Jerry Dunleavy observed that the situation fell under “that famous Hatch Act provision which doesn’t allow you to say White House cocaine doesn’t belong to the president or his son.”
And Republican State Leadership Committee communications director Mike Joyce quipped that this is the “same White House who said ‘mega MAGA’ from the briefing room podium,” which no doubt violated the Hatch Act.
