Fashion and Firings
Fashion and Firings: On the same day that 20 employees at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) were informed they would be losing their jobs as part of a Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) purge, the agency’s spokesperson, McLaurine Pinover, was posting “petite outfit inspo” on Instagram for her 800 followers.
Pinover, who was appointed in January as the communications chief for the federal government’s human resources department, has been maintaining a side venture as a fashion influencer. She frequently shared photos and videos of her outfits, often taken during office hours at OPM headquarters in Washington, D.C., according to CNN.
Shortly after CNN contacted her for a comment, Pinover deleted her Instagram fashion account, @getdressedwithmc. However, archived Google results indicate that her bio stated she was based in D.C. and described her content as “realistic fashion inspo.” Additionally, Google Images revealed that several of her outfit photos were taken inside the OPM office, which has been a key location for staff working under Elon Musk’s DOGE initiative.
A former OPM communications staffer, speaking anonymously to CNN, expressed frustration at Pinover’s use of government property for personal content. “I saw it, and I was like, ‘Are you kidding me, that’s my office,’” they said. “She’s the spokesperson for the agency advocating for firing employees based on performance and efficiency, and yet she’s using government property as a backdrop for her videos.”
Fashion and Firings: OPM Spokesperson’s Instagram Controversy
Jack Miller, Pinover’s predecessor from the Biden administration, also criticized the timing of her posts. According to Miller, the 20 OPM communications staff were notified of their terminations on February 13, the same day Pinover posted a photo with the caption, “A moment for mixed patterns.” He called the post “ridiculous,” given the circumstances.
As OPM’s spokesperson, Pinover has been a staunch defender of the controversial staff cuts spearheaded by the Elon Musk-led DOGE. Last month, when OPM drew criticism for requiring federal employees to submit a list of five work accomplishments per week, Pinover defended the move as part of the Trump administration’s commitment to an “efficient and accountable federal workforce.”
Beyond sharing fashion tips, Pinover’s Instagram account also included affiliate links, allowing her to earn commissions on clothing purchases made through her posts. It remains unclear whether she profited from these links.
Federal regulations prohibit government employees from using public property for anything other than authorized purposes, except for “de minimis personal use,” such as sending personal emails. Donald Sherman, chief counsel for the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics, suggested that Pinover’s posts could constitute a violation of these rules. “I would be very curious if she included her efforts to promote her brand as part of the five things she accomplished that week,” Sherman remarked. “It is highly problematic that while dedicated civil servants are being fired for dubious reasons, someone leading that effort is using their government job for private gain.”
Kathleen Clark, a government ethics expert from Washington University, noted that Pinover’s actions did not appear to involve leveraging her government position for influence, as her Instagram account did not explicitly mention her role at OPM. However, the controversy surrounding her dual roles raises broader ethical concerns about government officials engaging in private business while serving in public positions.