Two Democratic senators are calling for an ethics review into whether Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter and a senior White House adviser, violated federal ethics rules by tweeting her support for the Goya Foods brand.
If it’s Goya, it has to be good.
Si es Goya, tiene que ser bueno. pic.twitter.com/9tjVrfmo9z— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) July 15, 2020
In a letter sent to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics on Monday, Sens. Tom Carper, D-Del., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., claimed that Ivanka Trump’s tweet violated a federal rule barring public officials from using their position to endorse a private product, according to Politico.
The senators encouraged the agency to investigate the tweet, which shows Ivanka Trump holding up a can of Goya beans, and whether it proves Ivanka Trump misused her position.
“The timing of her remarks creates the appearance, at least, that praise for Trump Administration officials may elicit later endorsements from these same officials,” the letter states.
The federal ethics law Carper and Warren were referring to prevents federal employees from using their positions “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.”
White House counselor Kellyanne Conway was also accused of violating this law in 2017 after she endorsed Ivanka Trump’s product line.
Conway reportedly received ethics counseling after a complaint was filed, but no substantive action was taken beyond that.
White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said Ivanka Trump’s tweet does not violate this law because it “was made in her personal capacity voicing her personal support.”
“This complaint is another politically motivated, baseless attack from an organization with a vendetta against all of the administration,” McEnany added, pointing out that the Democrats are only complaining because the CEO of Goya, Robert Unanue, voiced praise for the Trump administration a few days prior.
“We’re all truly blessed at the same time to have a leader like President Trump who is a builder,” Unanue said during a July 9 round table event.
Ivanka Trump also defended her tweet through a spokesperson, arguing that she has “every right” to personally express her support for a brand.
“Only the media and the cancel culture movement would criticize Ivanka for showing her personal support for a company that has been unfairly mocked, boycotted and ridiculed for supporting this administration—one that has consistently fought for and delivered for the Hispanic community,” White House spokesperson Carolina Hurley said in a statement.
Following the media meltdown over his daughter’s tweet, President Trump took to Instagram for his own message of solidarity with the Hispanic community.
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