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Press Release | October 31, 2024

In New White Paper, Revolving Door Project Provides Recommendations to Reform Government Ethics and Win Back Trust of Americans

Ethics in GovernmentRevolving Door
In New White Paper, Revolving Door Project Provides Recommendations to Reform Government Ethics and Win Back Trust of Americans

IN NEW WHITE PAPER, REVOLVING DOOR PROJECT PROVIDES RECOMMENDATIONS TO REFORM GOVERNMENT ETHICS AND WIN BACK TRUST OF AMERICANS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Andrea Beaty, [email protected]

Today, the Revolving Door Project published a new white paper, “Rebuilding Public Trust: Six Principles to Guide Reform,” which provides a blueprint for strengthening the federal government’s ethics programs across the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The paper discusses case studies involving government ethics throughout past Republican and Democratic administrations, varying from analyses of standard ethics practices that undermine transparency to outright scandals and blatant corruption during the Trump Administration. Lead author and Revolving Door Project Senior Fellow Eleanor Eagan outlines recommendations to improve federal ethics programs and stop the ensuing erosion of Americans’ trust in government, from dampening the power of the revolving door and banning financial holdings for certain officials to more stringent enforcement of existing rules. 

Read the full paper here. 

Revolving Door Project Executive Director Jeff Hauser said, “With Trump unabashedly previewing a return to blatant corruption and Americans in a period of near-historically low trust in government, the next administration will be a crucial test of ethical management of the federal government.Unless the next administration prioritizes robust ethics reforms, trust in government institutions will erode further. And should the flagrant disregard of ethics rules return, the political opposition must use all tools at their disposal to advance ethics reforms and neutralize as much harm as possible.”

Revolving Door Project Research Director and co-author Andrea Beaty said, “By slowing the turn of the revolving door and banning all political appointees, federal judges, Supreme Court justices, and members of Congress from owning individual stocks, the next administration and Congress could make huge strides in rebuilding Americans’ trust that the government works in the public interest, not corporate interests. And our recommendations to promote transparency and strong enforcement would work to cement such advances.”

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