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“He planned the trip before the vote, took the vote, then took a trip immediately after the vote,” Hurt said. “And some might think he was awarded for his vote, whether that’s true or not.”

Hurt said she was sympathetic to Douglas, given he was new to public office at the time, but that government officials have to walk an ethics “tightrope.”

“There is a spider web of rules that people have to understand,” Hurt said. “And sometimes as a newer public official, when you don’t have staff to be that advocate for you, I think sometimes you step into difficult areas.”

Davina Hurt, director, government ethics, quoted by PennLive.