‘This Is A Propaganda Video’: Interior Blasted Over Post Boosting Trump’s Re-Election

David Bernhardt, President Donald Trump's nominee to be Interior Secretary, testifies during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee confirmation hearing on March 28, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Zach Gi... David Bernhardt, President Donald Trump's nominee to be Interior Secretary, testifies during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee confirmation hearing on March 28, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Zach Gibson/Getty Images) MORE LESS
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The Interior Department is taking heat after posting a video on Instagram a week before the presidential election touting President Trump’s “historic feats for conservation.”

On Tuesday, Interior Secretary David Bernhardt posted a video to his official Twitter account featuring majestic images of national parks, birds, mountains and plains over text praising the Trump administration. The video, which is set to an upbeat tune, abruptly throws in snippets of the President and concludes with Trump remarking last month that his administration is “recommitting ourselves to preserving the awesome majesty of God’s great creation.”

The Interior Department’s official Instagram account posted the same video later Tuesday — a jarring contrast to what its feed usually features: scenes of the nation’s great outdoors.

Tim Fullerton, who served as the director of digital strategy for the Interior Department during the Obama administration, decried the video as “propaganda” and said he would’ve been fired if he posted similar content when he ran the Interior’s digital team in 2012.

The Interior press secretary fired back at Fullerton in a tweet by insisting that the tweet featuring the Trump-friendly video got the green light from “career ethics attorneys.” The press secretary then proceeded to throw both Fullerton and the Obama administration under the bus.

Social media users soon came to Fullerton’s defense as they also slammed the Interior by accusing the department of committing a Hatch Act violation, which prohibits executive government officials from participating in political activity while on duty, but exempts the President and the vice president.

The Interior Department did not immediately respond to TPM’s request for comment.

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Notable Replies

  1. accusing the department of committing a Hatch Act violation

    I mean if it’s never going to be enforced why would republicans care.

  2. Avatar for xcopy xcopy says:

    Can’t imagine there are too many undecided conversationist / Sierra club members but leave it to this administration to find a new way to waste money, violate ethical standards, publicly embarrassing themselves, and break federal law all at the same time. Bravo.

    Do not pass go. Go directly to jail.

  3. Can they still collect $200?

  4. BASTARDS. The god-damned administration will make it legal to log millions of acres of the Tongass National Forest as of tomorrow.

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