Walter Shaub, who resigned in July as the head of the Office of Government Ethics, lodged a complaint against Kellyanne Conway (pictured), saying she ran afoul of the Hatch Act. | Alex Wong/Getty Images Legal complaint filed over Conway's comments on Moore race White House says Trump counselor was speaking to issues and not endorsing or opposing any candidate

A prominent government ethics expert has filed a complaint against White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, alleging that she violated federal law Monday by appearing to oppose Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore's Democratic opponent.

Walter Shaub, who resigned in July as the head of the Office of Government Ethics, said on Twitter on Wednesday that he lodged a complaint claiming that the top aide to President Donald Trump ran afoul of the Hatch Act when she discouraged Alabamans from voting for the Democratic nominee, Doug Jones.


"I have filed a complaint with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, which investigates Hatch Act violations," Shaub tweeted.

During an interview earlier this week on "Fox and Friends," Conway called Jones "weak on crime," "weak on borders," and "terrible for property owners." Pressed on whether she was endorsing Moore, she never answered directly but suggested his vote was needed to advance Trump administration priorities.

"I'm telling you that we want the votes in the Senate to get this tax bill through," she said, as she stood on the White House's North Lawn with the executive mansion in the background.

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The Office of Special Counsel declined to comment.

A White House spokesman suggested Conway’s remarks were within legal bounds.

“Ms. Conway did not advocate for or against the election of a candidate, and specifically declined to encourage Alabamans to vote a certain way,” White House spokesman Raj Shah said. “She was speaking about issues and her support for the president’s agenda. This election is for the people of Alabama to decide.”

Outside the White House on Tuesday as he prepared to leave for Thanksigivng weekend in Florida, Trump made similar comments to Conway's. However, the Hatch Act — which limits political involvement by federal employees — does not apply to elected officials such as the president or vice president.

However, Shaub noted that the ban on partisan political activity does cover senior administration officials when they are speaking in their official capacity or using their official titles. She was introduced on Fox as "counselor to the president."

Shaub, now a senior director for ethics with the Campaign Legal Center, compared the situation to an Obama administration incident last year in which Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro spoke during a Yahoo News interview about Hillary Clinton's chances of winning and his own chances of being named as her running mate. The Office of Special Counsel concluded that Castro had violated the Hatch Act because the interview was arranged through official channels and devoted to policy topics, and because he appeared to be speaking in his official capacity.

OSC chief Carolyn Lerner said Castro violated the law despite the fact that he sought to make clear in the interview that he was addressing the political topics in his personal capacity. Conway does not appear to have offered a similar qualification.

Only the president can impose any punishment on a presidential appointee found to have violated the Hatch Act. It appears Castro escaped any punishment for the violation.