Some people working in Trump’s White House are simultaneously collecting a paycheck from private clients, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. It’s a loophole that has been in place for decades, but the Trump administration is taking it to new extremes. These workers do not have to publicly disclose clients, leaving Americans in the dark about possible conflicts of interest.
“They carry a three-letter designation that allows them to wear both hats: ‘SGE,’ or special government employee. It’s a status under federal ethics laws that permits private-sector employees to work inside the government without having to relinquish their outside salaries or investments. Only a sliver of cases must publicly disclose clients or potential conflicts of interest. While the rules limit work to up to 130 days in any given year, it can be extended if the administration desires,” write Josh Dawsey, C. Ryan Barber and Katherine Long.
The designation has been used since the 60s, “but the Trump administration has used the status in a way never before seen, installing multiple people at top levels who are setting U.S. policy,” they write. There are reportedly 13 workers with this status in the White House and more within the federal government as a whole.
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SGEs include Elon Musk, who is handing the Department of Government Efficiency; Corey Lewandowski, who is an aide at the Department of Homeland Security; Trump’s faith adviser, Paula White and Steve Witkoff, who is working on peace talks with Ukraine and Russia as well as in the Middle East.
“Musk embodies the overlap between the administration and the private sector. The world’s richest person continues to helm Tesla and SpaceX while simultaneously serving as a special government employee advising the president, a role the White House confirmed in a legal filing,” the journalists write.
“As the driving force behind DOGE, he wields unprecedented power to overhaul the executive branch with few restrictions. At the same time, his space company has extensive government contracts, and Trump’s policies on electric vehicles could have a significant impact on Tesla’s profits,” they add.
Katie Miller, a top DOGE aide, works for a Republican consulting firm, where she helps “pitch the firm to new clients for lucrative contracts, offering her guidance about Washington in this moment,” the authors write. One of her clients is Apple. Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, recently met with Trump in the Oval Office. Her husband is Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff.
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“This is just taking this loophole to an extreme,” Richard Painter, a University of Minnesota law professor who served as a top ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush, told the Journal. “Special government employees hide their finances from the public, so people can’t find out about the extent of their potential conflicts of interest.”
It is “standard practice” to hire special government employees “based on their outside experience, for a limited period of time,” said Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary.
“President Trump’s SGE’s are highly-talented and well-respected businessmen and women, policy experts and communications professionals who are bringing a depth of experience and knowledge to help the president implement his agenda,” Leavitt said, adding that they are “abiding by all applicable federal laws.”