HUD Secretary Julian Castro violates U.S. law in his endorsement of Clinton
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A government watchdog says the nation's housing secretary violated a law prohibiting government officials from using their office for partisan politics when he promoted Hillary Clinton's presidential bid during a media interview.
Carolyn Lerner, head of the Office of the Special Counsel, said in a report sent Monday to President Barack Obama that Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro "impermissibly mixed his personal views with official government agency business" in violation of the Hatch Act.
Castro has endorsed Clinton and is a surrogate speaker for her campaign, which is permitted as long as he presents his views as personal.
But the report says Castro gave an interview to Yahoo Global News at HUD headquarters earlier this year in which he mixed comments about government policies with support for Clinton.