Bennet, Reed, Colleagues Demand Trump Administration Remove Partisan Political Messages from Federal Agency Web Sites and Communication Channels

Oct 7, 2025| Press Releases

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) joined U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and 22 Senate colleagues to demand Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russ Vought immediately remove unprecedented, partisan political messages that violate federal law from official government websites and other official communication channels.

Federal law restricts civil servants from using official government resources for political activities, and federal agencies are obligated to serve the American people without regard to politics. During the first Trump administration, the government shut down twice, and agency websites followed past precedent in maintaining nonpartisan communication with Americans about both shutdowns.

"These activities are in blatant violation of Section 715 of P.L. 118-47, which prohibits federal funds from being used for propaganda purposes 'designed to support or defeat legislation pending before the Congress,'" wrote Bennet, Reed, and the senators. "These activities also appear to violate the Anti-Lobbying Act and the Hatch Act. We urge you to immediately remove these illegal, partisan messages to comply with the law and hold accountable those who have directed this behavior."

The senators' letter follows a seemingly coordinated effort by federal agencies leading up to the ongoing government shutdown in which agencies displayed partisan political messages through official government websites, accounts, and email correspondence. Official websites for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Small Business Administration (SBA), the Department of Justice, and the Department of Agriculture displayed partisan messages. For example, HUD's official website currently displays a banner that reads, "The Radical Left in Congress shut down the government."

Additionally, Trump administration officials reportedly instructed civil servants at the SBA, Department of Labor, Department of Education, and Department of Veterans Affairs to set automatic reply email messages containing partisan political language. Furloughed employees at the Department of Education recently reported that their nonpartisan out-of-office messages were modified without their consent to direct blame towards Senate Democrats for voting against Republican funding proposals.

"As you well know, these messages are misleading, given that Democrats have voted four times over the last week to fully fund the government only to be rebuffed by our Republican colleagues," continued the senators. "Spirited public debate has its place, but agency resources, including websites or emails, should not be used to send overtly political, and in this case, misleading messages, to the American people."

Violating the Hatch Act is a serious offense and can be cause for removal from federal service. Other penalties may include grade reduction, being banned from government employment for up to five years, suspension, reprimand, or a civil penalty up to $1,000. Violating the Anti-Lobbying Act can result in civil penalties of $10,000 to $100,000 per occurrence.

In addition to Bennet and Reed, U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Angus King (I-Maine), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) signed the letter.

The text of the letter is available HERE and below.

Director Vought,

As Congress continues to work on funding the federal government for Fiscal Year 2026, the White House and political appointees assigned to agencies within the executive branch have been engaged in a widespread campaign of partisan political activities. These activities are in blatant violation of Section 715 of P.L. 118-47, which prohibits federal funds from being used for propaganda purposes "designed to support or defeat legislation pending before the Congress." These activities also appear to violate the Anti-Lobbying Act and the Hatch Act. We urge you to immediately remove these illegal, partisan messages to comply with the law and hold accountable those who have directed this behavior.

As early as September 30, 2025, federal agencies began publicly posting various notices and other media from official accounts, on official websites, and in official email correspondence that violate Sec. 715's prohibition on propaganda.

For example, beginning on September 30, 2025, the official website for the Department of Housing and Urban Development displayed a blatantly partisan political banner on their website claiming that the "Radical Left are going to … inflict massive pain on the American people…" On October 1, 2025, similar partisan political messages appeared on the websites for the Small Business Administration, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Agriculture, among others.

In addition to website updates, federal employees - including of the Small Business Administration, Department of Labor, Department of Education, and Department of Veterans Affairs - were reportedly directed to set automatic reply email messages containing partisan political propaganda which asserts that "Democrat Senators are blocking passage of H.R. 5371 in the Senate which has led to a lapse in appropriations." As you well know, these messages are misleading, given that Democrats have voted four times over the last week to fully fund the government only to be rebuffed by our Republican colleagues. But more important, they are clear violations of Section 715, which prohibits the use of federal funds by an agency to publicly support or oppose legislation pending before Congress.

Spirited public debate has its place, but agency resources, including websites or emails, should not be used to send overtly political, and in this case, misleading messages, to the American people.

Congress has enacted longstanding laws to ensure that partisan political activities and propaganda do not impede the government's ability to serve all Americans. However, given the blatant, systematic, and repeated violations of Sec. 715 of P.L. 118-47, and likely the Anti-Lobbying and Hatch Acts, over the last week, you must immediately remove these partisan messages from all executive branch agency communications and websites.

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