Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, faced calls to resign after an ethics complaint earlier in the week. Both local republicans, and online commenters have piled on the embattled democrat. The controversy concerns Whitehouse’s votes which funded an NGO which pays his wife for consulting work. Despite the damning evidence, he has maintained his innocence.
The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) filed a complaint. “Senator Whitehouse’s wife, Sandra Whitehouse, has worked for the advocacy group Ocean Conservancy since 2008. Since then, Ocean Conservancy has been awarded nineteen government grants worth approximately $14.2 million,” the group explained.
“It is important to note that nearly half of this $14 million was given to the group in the fall of 2024 alone–a $5.2 million grant in September 2024 and a $1.7 million grant in December 2024. Senator Whitehouse directly supported and voted for the legislation that led to these grants,” the complaint reads. “In addition to these apparent conflicts of interest, Sen. Whitehouse has a long history of working on legislation being lobbied for by organizations tied to his spouse.”
“Senate Ethics Rules clearly prohibit Senators from taking official action when they have a conflict of interest. The rules prohibit Senators from using any official action to obtain or appear to obtain a financial benefit, whether the benefit is obtained directly by the Senator or their spouse,” the document states. “It is these rules that Sen. Whitehouse appears to have directly violated. ”
“IMPEACH THIS THIEF
Legal experts are pointing out what they say is hypocrisy as Dem Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse faces an ethics complaint over a potential conflict of interest that resulted in millions of dollars in federal grants for a nonprofit associated with his wife. Discovered by DOGE,” a viral post to X announced to widespread celebration.
“He should be inducted for conflict of interest. His wife received millions for her non profit. What was the purpose? Collecting trash. For the money she received they could have cleaned the whole northeast coast.” replied another user. “This is why Dems are in a panic! I say retire without pay, no more government jobs ever!,” one woman replied.
“And he was one of the senators barking the loudest about how auditing the government wasn’t necessary or advisable. Guess he and all the others crying foul with Musk’s audits have the most exposure to crimes they committed,” noticed another. One user suggested, “I’m sure he isn’t worried. There is always a liberal appointed judge to make it all go away.”
"*" indicates required fields
However, the embattled Democrat maintains his innocence. He blamed “false accusations from far-right special interests and billionaires like Elon Musk -– who is trying to silence critics of his raid on federal agencies — will not impede the Senator’s pursuit of an accountable, ethical government that responds to Americans’ needs.”
The Rhode Island Republican Party said Whitehouse “funneled federal funds to benefit his wife’s consulting business.” Joe Power, Rhode Island GOP Chairman, wrote “It’s beyond hypocritical for Senator Whitehouse to accuse others of unethical behavior while potentially engaging in it himself.” Despite calls to resign, Whitehouse has refused to step down.