New York Times: Will Congress pass ethics changes swiftly after Trump leaves office?

The violent end to Trump’s presidency only puts an exclamation point on the run-on sentence of ethically questionable behavior displayed throughout his four-year term.

And as he leaves office, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are already at work on ethics changes that aim to prevent some of his most egregious behavior from becoming normalized.

Our reporter Elizabeth Williamson wrote an article detailing the status of such an overhaul and how likely it is to be enacted early in Biden’s term. Elizabeth agreed to answer a few questions about the topic for us. …

A willingness to fire inspectors general was one of Trump’s most obvious ways of flouting ethics concerns. How would the current proposals step up protections for inspectors general in executive agencies?

Actually, the I.G. protection component of the reform package has received early action in the House, according to Aaron Scherb of Common Cause, one of the watchdog groups pushing for these changes.

On Jan. 5, the eve of the Capitol riot, the bipartisan Inspector General Protection Act — introduced by Representatives Ted Lieu, Democrat of California, and Jody Hice, Republican of Georgia — passed the House by voice vote.

The act would help protect inspectors general from retaliation, for example by requiring the executive branch to notify Congress before placing an I.G. on administrative leave. And it would help ensure that vacant I.G. slots are filled promptly by requiring the executive to provide Congress an explanation for failing to nominate an I.G. after an extended vacancy.