Richard W. Painter

Richard Painter, a Republican, worked in the George W. Bush Administration as associate counsel to the President in the White House Counsel's office from February 2005 to July of 2007. His specialties are government ethics, business ethics, and lawyers' ethics. Since Donald Trump began his run for the presidency in 2016, Painter has been an outspoken critic of candidate Trump and President Trump, appearing frequently on such popular cable news stations as CNN and MSNBC. The author of two books, he has also appeared on NPR's All Things Considered and The Bill Maher Show. Norman Eisen, President Barack Obama's ethics chief, described Painter as "the Number one scholar in the country on government ethics." Painter, like the President, has a dedicated and faithful Twitter following.