(This is the last in a series of five posts on the demonstrated bias of Democratic FEC Commissioner Ellen Weintraub. The first installment is here, the second here, the third here, and the fourth is here.)
FEC Vice Chair Ellen Weintraub's personal staff continues to mount a political campaign against President Trump at the same time they consider enforcement cases involving President Trump. In many public pronouncements, Commissioner Weintraub's staff indicate they already have prejudged legal issues pending before the FEC. Some tweets appear to be posted during regular government work hours.
Consider these recent public statements on Twitter by Weintraub's personal counsel Tom Moore, who tweets as AltFEC:
Weintraub Staff: "Trump can’t seem to grasp that his inability to act like a normal human being for just a moment here makes it glaringly obvious that he is a small, small man." (Later in this Twitter feed, the AltFEC handle makes an inappropriate references to the President.)https://twitter.com/alt_fec/status/1033905199503560704
Weintraub Staff Retweets: "Trump is a horrible person. Sessions is a horrible person. But, Sessions stands between Trump and Mueller. So, in this opera of demons, Sessions is the one you root for. It’s all perversion. Welcome to 2018."
https://twitter.com/CharlesMBlow/status/1033362813413154818
Weintraub Staff Trolls Donald Trump, Prejudges Legal Issues: "I too feel sure that we will soon be getting to the bottom of all this corruption. But don’t worry, @realDonaldTrump, you’re already deeply involved."
https://twitter.com/alt_fec/status/1033340610449760257
Weintraub's Staff Prejudges Matters Apparently Pending Before the FEC: "Great explainer from @snopes on the difference between the civil and criminal #campaignfinance violations that have been batted around in public this week." (The tweet posts an analysis concluding Trump committed criminal acts.)
https://twitter.com/alt_fec/status/1032991889321013250
Weintraub Regurgitates the Statement that Cohen Has Evidence on Russian Collusion -- before Cohen lawyer Lanny Davis retracted the assertion: "Two interesting #SCOTUS questions: 1. Should #Kavanaugh be confirmed by the Senate when @realDonaldTrump has been implicated in a criminal conspiracy? and 2. If Cohen’s information on Trump’s collusion with Russia goes far enough, does #Gorsuch have an obligation to resign?"
https://twitter.com/alt_fec/status/1032226960028708864
Weintraub Staff Prejudges Russian Collusion, a Subject Likely Pending Before the FEC: "This is true in the limited sense that McCarthy alleged – irresponsibly & without proof, like a (bad) child – that some in the Administration were loyal to Russia. Mueller seems to be headed toward similar accusations, but professionally & with plenty of evidence."
https://twitter.com/alt_fec/status/1031156747501756417
As the agency that is tasked with regulating American's political speech, the FEC should not appear to be pre-disposed to favor or oppose one group or another within its regulated community without regard to the law and facts at issue in a particular enforcement matter or advisory opinion. It must apply the law equally and fairly, but the bias against President Trump and Republicans routinely manifested by Commissioner Weintraub's staff unfortunately brings that impartiality into doubt.