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More than 500 Biden Administration employees have reportedly signed an open letter urging the president to call for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. These employees may be using their roles in the federal government to undercut efforts aimed at supporting Israel. Further, the employees may have potentially violated the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from participating in partisan political activities at work.

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) sent letters to the U.S. Office of Special Counsel and  U.S. Inspectors Generals to hold Biden Administration staff accountable for supporting pro-Hamas policies, which undercuts the President’s support for Israel, and potentially violating the Hatch Act.

The letter sent to U.S. Office of Special Counsel Acting Special Counsel Karen Gorman  urges her to investigate any potential violations of the Hatch Act.

• “Given the timeline with which the anonymous letter was sent and the known connections between administration staff and the president’s political allies, it is reasonable to suspect that these government employees could have coordinated the letter with partisan political actors and/or groups, such as the DNC, while on government time, using government resources. If this suspicion were to be true, it would constitute major violation of the Hatch Act, which places certain prohibitions on partisan political activities for federal employees while at work.” 

The letters sent to cabinet-level Inspectors Generals demand a full investigation detailing which federal employees have signed the letter and the extent to which they used their roles to work against policies that support the State of Israel.

• “Because the letter claims to have been signed by employees across 40 different government agencies and by political appointees confirmed by the U.S. Senate, there is ample opportunity for the signers to abuse their positions to carry out their self-declared goal. These range from officials at the U.S. Department of State insisting on prolonging the review periods of arms sales to Israel to supervisors denying promotion and salary increases to employees that support Israel. Therefore, I urge you to conduct a full investigation to determine which employees signed the letter, publicize their names, and assess to what extent they have used their positions to work counter to the policies of the President.”

Read the letter to the U.S. Office of Special Counsel here.

Letters were sent to the Acting Inspector General and Deputy Inspector General at the U.S. Department of the Treasury and Inspectors Generals at the U.S. Department of State, International Trade Commission, Department of Education, Department of Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Department of Energy, Department of Agriculture, Department of the Interior, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Commerce, Department of Justice, Department of Veterans Affairs, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Transportation, Department of Defense, Department of Labor, Small Business Administration, Central Intelligence Agency,  and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Letters were also sent to the Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ethics Counsel of the Council of Economic Advisers, General Counsel of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House.

Read sample letter text below:

I write with regard to the more than 500 federal employees, both political appointees and civil servants, representing the Biden Administration who have signed an open letter demanding that the President “urgently demand a ceasefire.” This demand only stands to benefit Hamas, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, to the detriment of Israel, one of our closest allies. Further, the letter indicates the possibility of open insubordination and misuse of taxpayer provided resources by federal employees attempting to use their roles within the federal government to actively work against policies supported by Congress, the President, and the American people.

On November 14, 2023, media outlets reported that an open letter was circulating throughout the executive branch. Among other things, the letter called on President Biden to “demand a ceasefire” between Israel and Hamas. The signers of this letter are not whistleblowers seeking to expose wrongdoing within the executive branch. Rather, they are disgruntled staffers hiding in anonymity as they advocate for policies aimed at assisting Hamas.

To date, President Biden has refused to call for a “ceasefire,” nor has he hinted that such action is being considered. Juxtaposed with the administration’s staff letter, these policies are polar opposites and irreconcilable positions. Therefore, if any of these employees used U.S. government-furnished equipment or salary hours to sign or share the letter, this is a willful misuse of taxpayer money. It is also reasonable to suspect that any employee who has signed this letter may also have used their positions and authorities to delay, or even block, implementation of the President’s policies to provide assistance to Israel.

As is the case with any workplace, if an individual feels they can no longer support the goals and missions of their employer, they can, and should, resign from their post. This is especially true in government, where representing the will of the American people is of the utmost importance. However, there has been no mass resignation from the administration over disagreements concerning Israel’s response to, and attempted prevention of, terrorist attacks against innocent civilians. Instead, these individuals are hiding behind anonymity because they want to continue to enjoy the privileges that comes with working in the U.S. government, despite their opposition to policies supported by the President, Congress, and a majority of the American people. 

Because the letter claims to have been signed by employees across 40 different government agencies and by political appointees confirmed by the U.S. Senate, there is ample opportunity for the signers to abuse their positions to carry out their self-declared goal. These range from officials at the U.S. Department of State insisting on prolonging the review periods of arms sales to Israel to supervisors denying promotion and salary increases to employees that support Israel. Therefore, I urge you to conduct a full investigation to determine which employees signed the letter, publicize their names, and assess to what extent they have used their positions to work counter to the policies of the President. 

Thank you for your attention to this important matter. I look forward to your prompt response.

Sincerely,