Rejected Trump nominee quietly hired by SEC: report

Former Rep. Scott Garrett (R-N.J.), President Trump’s rejected nominee to run the Export-Import Bank, has been quietly hired to a position at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) despite the agency’s hiring freeze, Politico reported Saturday.

Garrett had an “excepted service” position as an attorney created for him at the SEC’s Office of the General Counsel earlier this year, according to the report. The personnel move, which was not announced publicly by the SEC, was discovered through a Freedom of Information Act request.

{mosads}

Garrett’s hiring to the SEC follows his failure to win enough votes last year after two Republicans joined with Democrats to oppose his nomination to lead the Export-Import Bank. Those who opposed him cited Garrett’s past opposition to the bank.

The SEC implemented a hiring freeze at the beginning of fiscal 2017, but Garrett’s appointment was exempted from this, as well as competitive hiring procedures — as are all attorney jobs for federal agencies — the Office of Personnel Management told Politico.

The agency’s budget justification for 2019 says it expects its staffing levels to drop from about 4,600 to 4,528 by September 2018.

The New Jersey Republican lost a bid for reelection in 2016 after Wall Street donors backed away from his campaign over his reported refusal to support gay or lesbian Republican candidates.

During his House career, Garrett chaired the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises, which oversaw a number of top financial firms.