Duffy faces new ethics complaint over official social media post promoting wife’s book

A government oversight nonprofit requested that the inspector general for the Transportation Department look into possible ethics violations by Secretary Sean Duffy over a post on his department social media account promoting his wife’s book. 

“Agency social media accounts are meant to convey important information relevant to all Americans about the agency’s work and mission — in this case DOT’s efforts to improve transportation across the country — not to highlight or promote side business projects of an agency official’s family,” wrote Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington President and CEO Donald K. Sherman in the July 7 letter. 

CREW’s request centers on a post from Rachel Campos-Duffy, a Fox News host, promoting her book, which is described as “a celebration of the people, the history and the spirit that make America great, from sea to shining sea.” The official X account of the Transportation secretary, her husband, shared that post, but the letter notes that it appears to have been deleted. 

Federal ethics regulations prohibit agency officials from using their position “for their own private gain,” “for the endorsement of any product, service or enterprise” or “for the private gain of friends, relatives or persons with whom the employee is affiliated in a nongovernmental capacity.”

A DOT spokesperson, however, said in a statement to Government Executive that: “A staffer inadvertently retweeted the post, and once the error was realized it was taken down.”  

In addition to assessing whether Duffy violated any ethics rules due to the social media repost, CREW’s request also calls for ensuring “sufficient internal controls” are in place to “reasonably prevent additional violations” in the future. 

The Transportation IG told Government Executive that the office has no comment. 

In May, CREW also requested that the department watchdog investigate whether any ethics rules were broken due to Duffy and his family’s participation in a U.S. travel web series produced by an entity backed by several transportation companies. The secretary has said that the government didn’t spend any money on the show, his family didn’t receive any financial benefits and career officials reviewed and approved his involvement. 

But the watchdog nonprofit argued that the web series and social media promotion suggest a trend. 

“[Duffy’s] use of his office, for at least the second time this year, to provide for the private gain of his own family shows a pattern of taking advantage of the privilege of public service to create opportunities for his family that other American families lack because they do not have access to the government’s resources,” Sherman wrote in the investigation request. “This pattern must be stopped.”