The U.S. Office of Special Counsel has issued new guidance that prohibits federal employees from talking about "resistance" to President Donald Trump after six current and former White House staffers were found to have violated the Hatch Act.
The New York Times reported Thursday that the updated guidelines for political speech when it comes to working for the federal government include language that bans anti-Trump talk or anything else that is political.
"We understand that the 'resistance' and '#resist' originally gained prominence shortly after President Trump's election in 2016 and generally related to efforts to oppose administration policies," the guidance reads. "However, 'resistance,' '#resist' and similar terms have become inextricably linked with the electoral success (or failure) of the president.
"Advocating for a candidate to be impeached, and thus potentially disqualified from holding federal office, is clearly directed at the failure of that candidate's campaign for federal office. Similarly, advocating against a candidate's impeachment is activity directed at maintaining that candidate's eligibility for federal office and therefore also considered political activity."
The Office of Special Counsel, not to be confused with special counsel Robert Mueller and his team for the Russia investigation, sent letters to six current and former executive branch workers this week after they were found to have violated the Hatch Act by posting politically charged tweets on their personal accounts.
The Hatch Act restricts political speech among members of the executive branch to just a handful of people, including the president and vice president.
Material from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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