Media Center

Today, members of 19 national organizations delivered the signatures of more than 4 million people to members of Congress urging a full investigation into President Trump’s campaign ties to Russia. The press conference and petition delivery specifically called on members of Congress to support a discharge petition sponsored by Rep. Eric Swalwell and Rep. Elijah Cummings to create an independent commission to investigate the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia.

Today, Common Cause urged Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) to enforce House Intelligence Committee Chair Devin Nunes’ recusal from the committee’s investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election. Nunes recused himself from the investigation after he was accused of disclosing classified information in an attempt to justify false claims by Donald Trump that the Obama Administration had “wiretapped” Trump Tower. But last week Chairman Nunes ignored his recusal and used his power as committee chair to subpoena intelligence service materials related to the “unmasking” of Trump campaign officials for their contacts with Russian government officials and intermediaries.

Today, Common Cause and Public Citizen co-hosted a briefing on Capitol Hill in Washington – Trump’s Conflicts of Interest and the Americans Who Are Impacted By White House Ethics – with Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) serving as honorary co-host. The videotaped event focused on everyday Americans adversely impacted by the Trump Administration’s unprecedented conflicts of interest. President Trump’s conflicts of interest and excessive secrecy come at a cost and that cost is borne by the American People.

The White House move to block the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) from collecting waivers granted by Trump Administration nominees to work in fields where they recently lobbied is an outrage and part of a disturbing pattern. OGE was created in the wake of the Watergate scandal to monitor ethics compliance, but the Trump Administration is denying it the ability to do so. The OGE is charged with ensuring government compliance with ethical standards and it must be allowed to perform that duty.

The conduct of President Trump alleged in media reports appear to represent the commission of a felony by Donald Trump. If true, The New York Times report that President Trump asked FBI Director James Comey to end the agency’s investigation of Michael Flynn would constitute obstruction of justice which is an impeachable offense. The accusations must be fully investigated by an independent commission and a special prosecutor.

New revelations about the circumstances around President Trump’s firing of FBI Director James Comey demand that the investigation add possible obstruction of justice to the list of potential crimes committed by the President and his staff.