I see the point of the article, and it is a good one. To use a prosaic example, it used to be that a listing agent might drive buyers around and, naturally, they became friendly and the buyers would often divulge to the agent facts that they might not necessarily want the seller to know.
However, the listing agent owes a duty of loyalty to her principal, the seller, including the duty to disclose facts within her knowledge such as, for example, the most the buyers might offer to pay. In agency law it is called `dual agency’ and is prohibited now: an agent must disclose his duty owed to the seller to the buyers if also repping them.
Scheunemann is on Georgia’s payroll and is also acting as an advisor to Senator McCain.
Consequently, setting aside politics for a moment (since this is FR and not DU where cant rules and ideological brown-shirting does not take place, and so forth and so on) as a matter of agency law, one of McCain’s principal foreign policy advisors, at least in this area, has a direct conflict of interest in any matter involving Georgia, if purporting to act on behalf of our country.
Is that an accurate summary?
Precisely. I’m glad someone can see through those foggy glasses.