The Steady State Files Hatch Act Complaint Against Attorney General Blanche Over Remarks at RNC Midterm Convention
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 28, 2026
Washington, D.C. — The Steady State, an organization of more than 450 former national security officials, today asked the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) to investigate whether Attorney General Todd Blanche violated the Hatch Act when he spoke at the Republican National Committee’s 2026 Midterm Convention in Dallas on September 9, 2026 — an event the Committee said was held “[t]o support the outstanding slate of GOP candidates running in the midterm elections this Fall.”
The Hatch Act keeps the powers of government office out of partisan politics. Officials in Mr. Blanche’s position may take part in politics in a personal capacity. They may not do so in their official capacity, and they may not use the authority of their office to affect an election’s result.
The Department of Justice said the Attorney General appeared “in his personal capacity” and that the appearance had been “approved by ethics.” He did not state his title, and the convention’s on-screen graphic identified him as a “former federal prosecutor.”
The complaint asks OSC to look at what he said. He told the audience that a man he connected to the death of Megan Bos “will never walk on American streets again,” said the Trump administration is “working hard every day to make sure we take care of victims,” spoke of the administration’s work with victims, recited federal enforcement results including “the largest health care fraud takedown in American history,” and warned offenders that “President Trump will hold you accountable.” Ms. Bos had testified at his confirmation hearing that “under his direction, the Department of Justice has engaged directly with Angel Families.”
The Act also restricts political activity on duty, excepting officials in the Attorney General’s position only if the costs are not paid for by the Treasury. That exception does not permit political activity in an official capacity or excuse a use of official authority to affect an election. The complaint asks OSC to determine whether the Attorney General was representing the Department, whether any cost of the appearance was paid by the Treasury and reimbursed, and whether he used official authority for an electoral purpose. It asks OSC to direct preservation of his schedule, travel and cost records, and the ethics advice the Department cited. In July, OSC closed a Steady State complaint about Secretary of War Pete Hegseth after stating that it had “confirmed” reimbursement of his travel costs, without giving an amount, payor, or date. The complaint asks that any disposition here state those particulars.
The Steady State has filed two earlier complaints concerning Mr. Blanche, over his appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference in March and at a Nassau County, New York, campaign event in August. This complaint concerns different conduct.
The complaint, as filed is available at:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/10pkNv93ine0uQIfDYDc8QSPZUqzjB1b0/view?usp=share_link
Street address redacted; exhibits available on request.