America 'close to a laughingstock': Former government ethics chief rips Trump for running US into...

[DonViejo]

Source: RawStory



America ‘close to a laughingstock’: Former government ethics chief rips Trump for running US into the ground

BRAD REED
17 JUL 2017 AT 08:39 ET

Walter Shaub, the outgoing chief of the Government Ethics Office, has told the New York Times that President Donald Trump has made America the butt of jokes when it comes to ethical standards in government.

“It’s hard for the United States to pursue international anticorruption and ethics initiatives when we’re not even keeping our own side of the street clean,” said Shaub of Trump’s assorted scandals, including the president’s use of his office to blatantly promote his own private business interests. “It affects our credibility… I think we are pretty close to a laughingstock at this point.”

Shaub thinks Trump’s repeated trips to his own businesses — most notoriously his weekend jaunts to his Mar-a-Lago resort, as well as most recently one of his golf clubs this past weekend to attend the U.S. Women’s Open tournament — make it look like the office of the presidency is one giant advertisement for Trump’s family enterprises.

“It creates the appearance of profiting from the presidency,” Shaub said. “Misuse of position is really the heart of the ethics program, and the internationally accepted definition of corruption is abuse of entrusted power. It undermines the government ethics program by casting doubt on the integrity of government decision making.”

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/2017/07/america-close-to-a-laughingstock-former-government-ethics-chief-rips-trump-for-running-us-into-the-ground/

[Initech]

1. Close to??? We've been a laughing stock since Orange Douche took office!

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

2. Exactly what I was thinking. We've already crossed that line. n/t

[BumRushDaShow]

10. We were a laughing stock when there were 17 clowns in the GOP clown car

running for their party's nomination.

[Leghorn21]

3. Thank you, Mr. Shaub. You have spoken out about LOSER 45's "misuse of position" from

Day 1. How frustrating and painful it must have been to witness the birth of this kleptocracy on your watch!!

When our nation is rid of these plundering liars, I hope you will return to your job and restore our nation's now-extinct "credibility", good sir.

[PearliePoo2]

4. America is a "Laughing Stock" and "Butt of Jokes". This is sickening to hear, isn't it?

How the hell is this happening? I can't believe we are at this place. A place that is very dark.
A mentally deranged narcissist is being orchestrated by and doing the bidding of the truly evil Bannon (the actual President).
They are blowing up EVERYTHING and destroying this Nation right in front of our horrified eyes. And it's all going according to plan.

[Golden Raisin]

7. Look at the Trump Cabinet ministers as a microcosm of the larger plan.

All deliberately chosen for their opposition to, open disdain for and willingness to gut and bleed out their respective departments. Our Republic, our Democracy, our Constitution are all being subjected to deliberate destruction. And just wait until they get another far-right ideologue justice on the Supreme Court.

[SCVDem]

5. Like everything tRump. the red hats had a typo!

Make America GRATE again!

Now it makes sense!

[bucolic_frolic]

6. It would be nice if

articles like this could be viewed on MSM and the Trumper Bubblesphere
so it could reach some of their viewers.

Mr. Painter is a cool guy and a brave soul ... is he getting any visibility
in conventional America?

[DonViejo]

8. You don't consider the NYT to be MSM? eom

[bucolic_frolic]

9. Well ...

yes of course I do, but no Trumpers would read it, Mr. Painter's heavy lifting
would go unnoticed to them unless it were on Fox & Friends or Breitbart

[DonViejo]

11. If they won't read it, why spend energy worrying about whether it will be in the MSM or Fox? eom

[bucolic_frolic]

12. LOL you have a point

just trying to save their souls

[barbtries]

13. it's far more than the appearance of profiting from the presidency.

it's the act of doing so.

[lark]

14. There is exactly 0 integrity in this so-called government.

They are 100% making all decisions on the basis of personal profit and protection, they don't give a shit about us and never even consider us, except how to hurt those that didn't vote R. They don't even take the welfare of their own constituents into account or they wouldn't be destroying Medicaid and healthcare in general.