Days after his unexpected dismissal, the former director of the Office of Government Ethics expressed that even though he was appointed by former President Biden, he was prepared to serve in the Trump administration.
David Huitema affirmed his willingness to work for any administration throughout his five-year tenure.
“You kind of understand going in that you’ll be serving across multiple administrations. So that was something I had anticipated,” Huitema stated, who was nominated by Mr. Biden in September 2023 and sworn in on December 16, 2024. “I was committed for the five years. I was dedicated to collaborating in good faith with any administration, including this one. I believed we were off to a positive start.”
The Office of Government Ethics is responsible for gathering both confidential and public financial disclosures, ethics agreements, and other documentation from government officials, including the president and his Cabinet. Its mission is to avert conflicts of interest.
In an interview with CBS News, Huitema revealed that he learned of his termination through a brief two-sentence email. His ousting occurred two weeks after Mr. Trump removed at least 17 inspectors general from their positions as oversight officials.
Huitema remarked that this indicates his firing “doesn’t seem to be personal. I’m in good company.”
“It really signifies, I think, an effort to, you know, essentially dismantle the institutions across the government that are established to serve as an independent voice for integrity and accountability,” Huitema added.
Following Huitema’s dismissal, Mr. Trump appointed Doug Collins, a Republican former congressional member and current Department of Veterans Affairs secretary, as the acting director of OGE.
A cohort of eight former inspectors general who were dismissed filed a lawsuit on Wednesday contesting their terminations. They contend that their dismissals violated federal statutes intended to prevent interference with their oversight responsibilities.
Currently, Huitema has not made a decision regarding whether he will pursue legal action.
“This is all still so fresh and unexpected for me. I truly have no clue what’s next, and I’m just beginning to contemplate that,” Huitema expressed. “So, I’m really unsure.”
Huitema noted that the Office of Government Ethics was established by Congress following the Watergate scandal that resulted in President Richard Nixon’s resignation. He emphasized that it was intended “to take a nonpartisan, non-politicized, straightforward, by-the-book approach and be that voice of integrity where it’s needed.”
“I sincerely believe that my removal from this role contradicts the vision of Congress,” Huitema stated.
Less than a year after Mr. Trump began his first term in 2017, Walter Shaub resigned as the head of OGE, citing that the presidential administration was disregarding the “norms and ethical traditions of the executive branch that have established our ethics program as the gold standard globally.”
Is Huitema concerned that the mechanisms meant to safeguard the government against conflicts of interest are in danger of failing?
“I don’t know. And I suppose I will be observing from the sidelines now,” Huitema replied.
