Tag: conflicts of interest

Trump’s Russia Problems Under Scrutiny Next Week

The following article by Jefferson Morley was posted on the AlterNet website May 4, 2017:

Republican obstructionism has slowed the investigation, but not killed it.

What happened to RussiaGate?

A month ago, the headlines were flowing. National Security Adviser Michael Flynn had been fired for lying about his meeting with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Attorney General Jeff Sessions had to recuse himself because he lied, under oath, about what he knew of the meeting.

The House Intelligence Committee investigation was investigating possible connections between Russian officials and President Trump’s entourage, as well as Trump’s false March 4 Twitter blast claiming that President Obama had wiretapped him. Continue reading “Trump’s Russia Problems Under Scrutiny Next Week”

Bribe Cases, a Jared Kushner Partner and Potential Conflicts

The following article by Jesse Drucker was posted on the New York Times website April 26, 2017:

President Trump’s son-in-law, a top adviser, had help building a real estate empire from a member of one of Israel’s wealthiest families.

It was the summer of 2012, and Jared Kushner was headed downtown.

His family’s real estate firm, the Kushner Companies, would spend about $190 million over the next few months on dozens of apartment buildings in tony Lower Manhattan neighborhoods including the East Village, the West Village and SoHo.

For much of the roughly $50 million in down payments, Mr. Kushner turned to an undisclosed overseas partner. Public records and shell companies shield the investor’s identity. But, it turns out, the money came from a member of Israel’s Steinmetz family, which built a fortune as one of the world’s leading diamond traders. Continue reading “Bribe Cases, a Jared Kushner Partner and Potential Conflicts”

With Trump Appointees, a Raft of Potential Conflicts and ‘No Transparency’

The following article by Erik Lipton, Ben Protess and Andrew W. Lehren was posted on the New York Times Website April 15, 2017:

D. J. Gribbin, an infrastructure specialist on the White House’s National Economic Council, with President Trump this month. Mr. Gribbin used to work for Macquarie, a bank that specializes in infrastructure and stands to gain from such undertakings. Credit Stephen Crowley/The New York Times

WASHINGTON — President Trump is populating the White House and federal agencies with former lobbyists, lawyers and consultants who in many cases are helping to craft new policies for the same industries in which they recently earned a paycheck.

The potential conflicts are arising across the executive branch, according to an analysis of recently released financial disclosures, lobbying records and interviews with current and former ethics officials by The New York Times in collaboration with ProPublica.

In at least two cases, the appointments may have already led to violations of the administration’s own ethics rules. But evaluating if and when such violations have occurred has become almost impossible because the Trump administration is secretly issuing waivers to the rules. Continue reading “With Trump Appointees, a Raft of Potential Conflicts and ‘No Transparency’”

Top 10 Risks and Remedies for Trump’s Conflicts of Interest

The following article by Liz Kennedy and Danielle Root was posted on the Center for American Progress website February 24, 2017:

Overview

Trump’s corrupt conflicts of interest threaten America’s national security, economy, and democracy; citizens, Congress, and the courts have important tools to demand accountability and exercise oversight.

Introduction and summary

President Donald J. Trump’s dangerous, unprecedented, and unconstitutional business conflicts of interest pose grave risks to America’s interests at home and abroad. The full extent of Trump’s indebtedness and foreign entanglements remain unknown while he continues to hide his tax returns. Moreover, because his business and financial ties are largely undetermined there is every reason to fear that Trump will provide favors and special treatment to his business partners and that foreign states and businesses will have too much power over the Trump administration and its decisions. The public will rightly question whether Trump’s actions are made for the benefit of the American people or to further his own financial gains. Continue reading “Top 10 Risks and Remedies for Trump’s Conflicts of Interest”

If Melania Trump Isn’t In Business, Why Are Her Companies Still Active?

The following article by Kevin G. Hall of the McClatchy Washington Bureau was posted on the National Memo website February 23, 2017:

REUTERS/Rick Wilking

First lady Melania Trump has several companies that are still active enterprises, raising questions about whether they will be used for profit while she is in the White House.

Beyond the 564 companies listed in then-candidate Donald Trump’s May 2016 financial disclosure were seven companies associated with his wife.

All but one of her companies had been listed in the disclosure as active, and five of the seven were still active as of Feb. 21. The one Melania Trump company he listed last year as having inactive assets — Melania LLC — appears to be an ongoing and active company in the records of the New York State Division of Corporations. Continue reading “If Melania Trump Isn’t In Business, Why Are Her Companies Still Active?”

Americans think President Trump’s conflicts of interest are unethical: poll

The following article by Matthew Rozsa was posted on the Salon website February 23, 2017:

More than half of registered voters say Trump is either breaking the law or simply being unethical

President Trump at a White House news conference Wednesday. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)

President Donald Trump’s conflicts of interest appear to be resonating with Americans, despite White House counselor Kellyanne Conway’s claims that “people don’t care” about matters like his unreleased tax returns.

More than a quarter of registered voters — 28 percent — believe Trump has done something illegal, while an additional 25 percent believe he has behaved unethically but not illegally, according to a new McClatchy-Marist Poll. By contrast, only 42 percent of poll respondents think Trump has done nothing wrong, with 6 percent saying they’re unsure. Continue reading “Americans think President Trump’s conflicts of interest are unethical: poll”

Is President Trump surrendering America’s moral high ground?

The following article by James Hohmann and Breanne Deppisch was posted on the Washington Post website January 26, 2017:

THE BIG IDEA: Not even a week into Donald Trump’s presidency, some liberal internationalists find themselves privately pining for George W. Bush.

Despite acts of brutality that were perpetrated on his watch, Bush always insisted publicly that the United States did not torture. He understood that copping to the enhanced interrogation techniques he had secretly approved could undercut our moral standing on the world stage, provide terrorists a potent recruiting tool and give our enemies an excuse to torture Americans.

Trump doesn’t think like that. “I have spoken as recently as 24 hours ago with people at the highest level of intelligence,” the new president told ABC News in an interview that aired last night, “and I asked them the question, ‘Does it work? Does torture work?’ and the answer was, ‘Yes, absolutely.'” Continue reading “Is President Trump surrendering America’s moral high ground?”

6 of Donald Trump’s Most Appalling Moments This Week

Does anyone out there still honestly think we have to give this dangerous weasel the benefit of the doubt?

The following article by Janet Allon was posted on the AlterNet website January 15, 2017:

Say what you will about the possibly fictional “dossier” containing damaging information about our president-elect that Buzzfeed released this week, it sure seems to have annoyed him, and there’s something distressingly enjoyable about that. On the cusp of the inauguration of a certifiably deranged idiot, that’s going to have to pass for fun for now. Never has there been a leader more deserving of stories full of innuendo and giggle-inducing allegations. You reap what you sow, to quote Donald Trump’s second-favorite book, right after his own ghostwritten tome. Continue reading “6 of Donald Trump’s Most Appalling Moments This Week”

Trump confidants serving as presidential advisers could face tangle of potential conflicts

The following post by John Wagner and Ylan Q. Mui was posted on the Washington Post website January 8, 2017:

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn will have the ear of President-elect Donald Trump as an adviser focused on cutting government regulations. But Icahn also stands to benefit if his advice is taken: It could make the energy companies and others in which he has a stake more profitable. Continue reading “Trump confidants serving as presidential advisers could face tangle of potential conflicts”