NEW YORK — The White House has issued a stern warning to administration officials attending the Republican convention here: Don’t misbehave at all-night cocktail parties, steer clear of corporate skybox tickets to the Yankees game and if a gift costs more than $20, politely say no thanks.
Lest they forget, the White House counsel printed a list of the top 10 rules on cream-colored, wallet-size cards and distributed them to scores of employees–from Cabinet officials to rank-and file political appointees–before they arrived in New York City.
Not sure if you can accept the discounted little blue box from Tiffany & Co., attend a private Sotheby’s tour of collectibles from Johnny Cash’s estate or use a lobbyist’s courtside seats to the U.S. Open? A telephone hotline to the counsel’s office, where questions can be answered around the clock, is printed on the laminated cards.
Every moment of the national convention will be scripted inside Madison Square Garden, down to which variety of Republican will speak in prime time, and now even the revelry outside the hall comes with an instruction book. The guidelines, dispatched from the Oval Office, stop short of advising a curfew.
Before joining delegates, elected officials and corporate sponsors this weekend at the convention, the White House staff attended mandatory ethics briefings in Washington. For a room of senior administration officials, Chief of Staff Andrew Card played a network news broadcast from the Democratic convention showing elected officials and others partying into the night at corporate bashes.
“I do not want this to happen at our convention,” Card sternly warned, according to an account from people in the room. The directive was clear: Don’t embarrass the president, violate the ethics code or sully the administration’s reputation.
While the true purpose of the four-day political gathering may be to nominate President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, it’s a fact that much of the more pertinent business is conducted far beyond convention boundaries. And White House employees and Cabinet officials often are the most sought-after dinner dates.
Image control
“The president expects his appointees to adhere to the highest ethical standards,” White House spokeswoman Claire Buchan said in an interview.
The pocket-size guide–“Convention Reminders for White House Staff”–underscores the extent to which the administration is seeking to control the image of the executive branch.
The administration, Buchan said, merely was trying to make it easy for employees to follow guidelines set forth by the Office of Government Ethics.
In a list of instructions, staff members are instructed: “Keep government and political activities separate.” Government-issued cellular phones, the rules instruct, are not to be used for political activity.
White House employees may only attend a reception or dinner “if 200 or more people with a diversity of viewpoints are expected to attend,” the guide says. Finally, officials are warned: “Never solicit a gift!”
“Some invitations are or are not appropriate,” Buchan said. “If there is any question whether something is appropriate, there is a phone number to contact an ethics attorney.”
Mary Boyle, a spokeswoman for the watchdog group Common Cause, said conventions have become dominated by entertainment and “free-for-all parties” designed to curry favor with members of Congress and government employees.
“These conventions are not supposed to be some kind of ethics-free zones,” Boyle said. “It’s very commendable that they are trying to pay attention to this and put an emphasis on good ethical behavior.”
In the ethics briefing sessions, the White House counsel’s office told the White House staff which party invitations to accept and which ones to shy away from. “They showed real-life examples of what raised flags,” Buchan said.
The Republican convention, just like the Democratic gathering in Boston last month, features entertainment offerings from morning to night sponsored by corporate lobbyists. From a “Martinis in Manhattan” reception to an evening with Frank Sinatra Jr. in the classic Rainbow Room to a private showing of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” there are scores of events to delight or tempt guests here.
`Potential conflicts’
“The national conventions are now kind of the last oasis for unlimited money to be spent in various ways to benefit office holders and political parties,” said Fred Wertheimer, the president of the non-partisan watchdog group Democracy 21. “You have a huge mix of big money-funded events, special-interest donors, lobbyists, big money donors and office holders. It creates potential conflicts.”
The mix of politics and entertainment, which includes concerts with performers such as Lynard Skynard, also is likely to draw media attention. That is specifically what the White House is hoping to avoid.
The schedule of parties at the Republican convention is so extensive that questions are certain to arise about what is allowed under the ethics rules. After the convention closes each day, a private party hosted by Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) opens at the Tunnel nightclub.
But is it proper for a White House employee to attend the “Best Little Warehouse in NYC Party?” The ethics hotline is open for the answer. And according to the pocket card, “government cells may be used for ethics questions.”
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Cards handed out
Highlights of instructions distributed to White House staff in advance of this week’s Republican National Convention in New York City:
– Keep government and political activities separate. You may not use your official title–except as one of several biographical details when such information is used to identify you– or your official authority or influence in connection with convention activities.
– You may not promise employment or any other benefit for political activity.
– You may not ask subordinates to engage in political activity, e.g., to prepare convention remarks or speeches that contain partisan politican advocacy.
– You may not personally solicit, accept, or receive political contributions; this ban includes in-kind donations.
– Other than reasonable incidental use that incurs no additional cost, you may not use government resources for political activity.
– You may not disclose to anyone outside the executive branch any official information protected by law, executive order, or regulation.
– You may accept a gift valued at $20 or less (but no more than $50/year from a single source).
– You may attend a reception, dinner, or similar convention-related event if 200 or more people with a diversity of viewpoints are expected to attend.
– You may accept meals, lodging, transportation and other benefits when provided by a 26 USC “527(e)” tax-exempt political organization, e.g., BC ’04; RNC; Committee on Arrangements; authorized state, district, and local political and candidate committees.
– You may not be the “honored” or “special” guest or “draw” at any corporate-sponsored event, but you may make remarks. Never solicit a gift!
Chicago Tribune
