Democrats on Capitol Hill say it’s time for Jamieson Greer to pick the job he loves most.
Greer is President Donald Trump’s U.S. trade representative, responsible for steering the country through what’s shaping up to be a tariff-fueled global trade war. But Greer is also serving as the acting head of two other agencies, the Office of Special Counsel and the Office of Government Ethics.
Those are important jobs, at least under a normal administration. The OSC is tasked with protecting government whistleblowers, and the OGE is responsible for enforcing ethics rules in the executive branch. It would be a lot for Greer to juggle on top of his trade gig, especially as Trump’s tariffs melt down financial markets, prompt retaliation from other countries and raise the likelihood of a recession.
Four House Democrats, led by Rep. Ayanna Pressley (Mass.), sent a letter to Greer on Wednesday telling him it was time to drop his side hustles and focus on being the country’s top trade official — a “singular” role at a time when “the stakes could not be higher.” They said wearing three different hats within the administration not only creates conflicts of interest but makes it impossible to do any one job well.
“Taking on at least two other jobs is misguided and a disservice to the public.”
– Democrats in their letter to Jamieson Greer
“Since President Trump has launched a global trade war, it is critical that you remain focused on fulfilling the duties for which you were confirmed by the United States Senate,” Pressley wrote, joined by Reps. Don Beyer (Va.), Linda Sánchez (Calif.) and Gerry Connolly (Va.). “Taking on at least two other jobs is misguided and a disservice to the public who expect a competent and effective USTR, OSC, and OGE.”
The Senate confirmed Greer, a trade attorney who served in the first Trump administration, as the U.S. trade representative on Feb. 26. Meanwhile, the Office of Government Ethics currently lists Greer as acting director on its website.
A spokesperson for the Office of Special Counsel confirmed Greer is leading the agency, but did not address how much time he’s been putting in at the office. They referred questions to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
Greer definitely wasn’t working at the special counsel’s office or the government ethics office on Tuesday morning ― he was busy testifying on the trade war before a Senate panel.
It’s unlikely this administration wants a functioning special counsel office, since it’s one of a handful that protects the labor rights of federal employees — in part by seeking the reinstatement of those who were fired or disciplined illegally. Trump created the opening at OSC when he removed the previous special counsel, Hampton Dellinger, in early February.
Dellinger sued on the grounds his firing was illegal, and won a judge’s order allowing him to keep his position. But he later dropped his case after an appeals court allowed his firing to proceed.
Pressley and her colleagues wondered how the OSC could fulfill its mission if its acting director was also running trade policy at such a critical time.
“With the current onslaught of attacks, layoffs, and firings of government employees, OSC’s work has greatly increased in significance and quantity,” they wrote.
An aggressive Office of Government Ethics wouldn’t be high on this administration’s priority list, either. The OGE is responsible for preventing conflicts of interest under a president who recently advertised Tesla cars for his billionaire backer Elon Musk on the White House grounds.
In early February, Trump fired the independent office’s director who’d been appointed by former President Joe Biden to a five-year term.
“Since coming into the presidency, the Trump Administration has been the subject of dozens of ethics complaints that require serious attention,” the Democrats noted in their letter.
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They put a number of questions to Greer, including how many hours he’s working at the different offices, whether he’s got any other jobs they don’t know about, and if he’s recused himself from any whistleblower or ethics cases involving the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. They urged him to resign his non-trade positions immediately.
“Anything less fails to meet the ethical and professional standards required to preserve the independence and effectiveness of both offices,” they wrote.