D.C. Official Faces Possible Charges
After Not Disclosing Conflicting Jobs
A congressman is suggesting possible criminal charges against a former high-ranking District of Columbia official who simultaneously held two other jobs without disclosing them.
Caroline Lian held jobs as D.C.’s deputy director of the Department of Buildings, a risk manager for federal mortgage giant Freddie Mac and served as an elected official on the Falls Church City Council.
She earned $175,000 a year from the District of Columbia since October 2022 and another six-figure salary from Freddie Mac.
She was fined $25,000 by the D.C. government and has left all three jobs.
A D.C. ethics investigation showed she juggled the three jobs through a combination of telecommuting and in-person work. Ethics rules for D.C. employees require disclosure of possible conflicts through other employment.
Rep. John Rose, R-Tenn., said the job losses and fine might not be enough of a punishment for Lian’s apparent conflicts of interest. He sent a letter to Freddie Mac chief executive Diana Reed asking for a federal investigation.
“We certainly want to see Freddie Mac do everything possible to sanction Ms. Lian for her fraud and potential fraud here of taxpayers,” Rose wrote. “And we would like to see Freddie Mac recover the losses and potentially hold Ms. Lian accountable in criminal prosecution."
He asked Reed for information about how much money Lian earned from Freddie Mac and how the organization will ensure its employees no longer hold unapproved outside employment.
"Freddie Mac is an important agency in terms of the work that it does to make housing affordable for all Americans, and anytime you hear of a misapplication or misuse of government resources, or in this case, a government-sponsored entity, you worry about what that ultimately costs Americans," Rose said in his letter.
The Arlington County Commonwealth’s Attorney also is investigating Lian.
Liberal Lawmakers Defend FTC Head
For Aggressive Antitrust Actions
A record pace of antitrust lawsuits in the Biden administration has made the job of the Federal Trade Commission chair an issue during the campaigns for president this fall.
Lina Khan has won supporters among opponents of some big business market strategies but has alienated some of the largest corporate donors to the Democratic and Republican parties.
The controversy centers on Khan’s aggressive challenges to corporate mergers while increasing investigations and lawsuits against alleged anti-competitive corporate behavior.
The issue arose again days ago when billionaire media and tech investor Mark Cuban called for Khan to be replaced. He said she is hurting American enterprise.
He said in a report published on the news website Semafor, “If it were me, I wouldn’t” keep Khan as FTC administrator.
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D.C. in Brief
Lawmakers Ask Chief Justice
About Conflicts in Jan. 6 Case
Two congressional Democrats are awaiting answers from the Supreme Court’s chief justice about how he handled an apparent conflict of interest over a Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot case.
Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote a letter this month to Chief Justice John Roberts asking about how the court handled publication of its ruling last year in Fischer v. United States.
The ruling represented a partial victory for the Jan. 6 insurrectionists.
The majority opinion originally was being written by Justice Samuel Alito. Roberts took it away from him to complete it himself.
The issue was allegations that Alito went too far in showing support for Trump and the insurrectionists.
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Supreme Court Leans Toward
Allowing Ghost Gun Regulation
The Supreme Court seemed poised last week to extend federal gun control laws over “ghost guns” that have provoked outrage and higher armed assault rates as the technology became more sophisticated in the past decade.
Ghost guns refer to homemade guns that are unlicensed and lack serial numbers that can be traced by law enforcement. They most commonly are made from 3D printers or assembled from components that can be ordered through the mail.
The number of ghost guns recovered by federal law enforcement agents soared from 1,758 in 2016 to 25,785 in 2022, according to the U.S. Justice Department.
Police in Washington, D.C., which has some of the nation’s most restrictive gun laws, say their seizures of illegal firearms has shifted criminals toward acquiring more ghost guns.
The rising tide of ghost gun shootings prompted the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in 2022 to modify the Gun Control Act under its regulatory authority.
D.C. Attorney General Sues TikTok
Over Alleged Harm to Children
The District of Columbia joined 13 states in filing lawsuits last week that accuse social media company TikTok of using addictive features on its platform that hurt the mental health of children.
TikTok advertises itself as a safe social media platform for young persons.
The attorneys general say TikTok downplays features such as the endless scrolling feeds and “challenge” videos designed to encourage children to become compulsive users of the app.
“In ruthless pursuit of profits, TikTok intentionally designed and cultivated a highly addictive social media application that it knows harms children,” the lawsuit filed by District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb says. “The App is loaded with an array of features designed to maximize engagement and keep users hooked.”
The lawsuit filed in D.C. Superior Court seeks an injunction against statements by TikTok that deceive users into believing the app is safe. It also seeks damages to be determined by the court after a jury trial.
The dangers include depression and lower self-esteem that can lead children into a pattern of self-destructive or other unhealthy behavior, according to the attorneys general.
TikTok is a short-form video hosting service owned by Chinese internet company ByteDance. It hosts videos submitted by users that range from three seconds to one hour.
Since it started in 2016, TikTok has grown into one of the world's most popular social media platforms. By 2021, the number of its users surpassed Google with more than two billion downloads worldwide.
The platform uses recommendation algorithms to connect internet content creators with the audiences they seek.
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