Trump-appointee accused of ethics violations for offering private Capitol tours to 'patriots' in Fall before Jan. 6

On Tuesday, Axios reported that the Trump-appointed Architect of the Capitol is facing ethics violations after the Office of the Inspector General determined he offered private tours of the complex to "patriots" in the fall of 2020, while the Capitol was supposed to be shut down, abusing his authority and wasting taxpayer money in the process.

"Family members of J. Brett Blanton, who was appointed by former President Trump, offered private tours of the Capitol in September 2020 when the building was closed, according to the report," wrote Sareen Habeshian. "Social media posts from his wife, Michelle Blanton, showed photos of them from the dome of the Capitol with a comment stating, 'This is happening!!!' and 'All PATRIOTS welcome.' The latter comment was later edited to say '*Patriots=Americans who love America. Not a candidate,' per the report."

"Blanton is also accused of abusing government property and wasting taxpayer money by using his government-owned vehicle as his and his family's personal car," said the report. "He allegedly allowed his family to drive the vehicle and took it out of state to South Carolina and Florida, per the report. In a two-year period, the vehicle had almost 30,000 miles on it — about three times more than it should've had, per the watchdog."

That mileage reportedly cost the government at least $12,400 in maintenance — including from a car crash Blanton was involved in while driving to a brewery, after which he claimed to be an "agent" and refused to give his insurance information, saying the federal government would pay the claim.

U.S. attorneys in D.C. and Virginia investigated the matter separately but declined to bring criminal charges. The Internal Revenue Service is also reportedly investigating the matter to see if any tax laws were violated.

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Trump's administration was marked with an explosion of stories on public corruption and misuse of official powers, ranging from Trump's nepotistic use of his daughter and son-in-law for major policy decisions, to his former D.C. hotel being used by foreign dignitaries to curry financial favor, to his first EPA director Scott Pruitt's widespread use of government planes and employees for his own personal lifestyle.