Ethics Laws Will Sideline Jared and Ivanka

[riversedge]

Published on
Monday, April 03, 2017
by
USA Today


Ethics Laws Will Sideline Jared and Ivanka


http://www.commondreams.org/views/2017/04/03/ethics-laws-will-sideline-jared-and-ivanka?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=socialnetwork

Financial disclosures show conflicts of interest on trade, taxes and Wall Street regulation.
by
Richard Painter, Norman Eisen, Virginia Canter


..............
We now have information on the assets and income of two of President Trump’s closest relatives and most intimate advisers, thanks to Friday night’s White House dump of financial disclosure forms. But Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump have so many potential conflicts of interest that if they abide by ethics laws and past White House practices, they won’t be able to advise the president on three of his top priorities: Trade, tax reform and Wall Street deregulation.

.............................................

The situation is particularly worrying because ethics compliance in the Trump administration has been weak, as evidenced by the White House Counsel's inadequate response to apparent or actual lapses by several White House staffers including Kellyanne Conway, Christopher Liddell, Steve Bannon, Reince Priebus and Dan Scavino Jr. We are also concerned that the White House Counsel's office initially took the evasive and incorrect position that Ivanka could have a West Wing office, a security clearance and White House communications equipment without being considered a government employee for conflict of interest purposes. That office has also claimed many ethics laws may not apply at all to the White House, drawing a rebuke from the Office of Government Ethics. In light of this troubled start, we question whether and how enforcement will work for Jared and Ivanka, powerful relatives of the president.

And there are other serious legal issues as well. Ivanka has reported rental income of $1 million to $5 million from the Trump Old Post Office LLC investment. This raises the same constitutional conflict of interest issue as for her father. The Foreign Emoluments Clause of the Constitution bars any federal official from receiving any payment of “any kind whatever” from a foreign government. Several diplomats representing foreign governments have participated in events at the Trump International Hotel, including Kuwait which recently held its National Day event there. Unless she divests her interest, Ivanka runs a similar risk of running afoul of the Constitution. The hotel is also a problem for Ivanka under the federal conflict of interest statute, which bars her from taking any official action relating to her investment-- even going to the hotel on official business.

The president is counting heavily on Jared and Ivanka, as are the overwhelming majority of less prosperous voters who sent him, and now them, to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. But given their enormous wealth and far-reaching conflicts of interest, it remains to be seen whether they can perform their duties effectively — and legally.

[heaven05]

1. 8 YEARS

no scandal or corruption.

60+DAYS and all we have is ethics violations, corruption of the most egregious sort. Now as meat for the deplorables to keep their simple minds diverted, while boy-potus, kellyconjob, bannon, miller et al. figure out how to loot the Treasury and dismantle government, they, by way of MJ and other treasonous media shows and outlets offer up 'the wall', "lock her up", Susan Rice per drudge reporting, n.Korea, MAGA, deporting innocent hard working immigrants, a known racist as AG, pushing a conservative with racist tendencies for SC. From class to crass because of the total stupidity of the boy-potus puppet voters.

[Orrex]

3. Perhaps you're forgetting his scandalous blackness

And, to a sizable portion of these United States, that's a much worse crime than billions of dollars worth of fraud, theft and bribery.

[heaven05]

4. true

America doesn't have a race problem, ameriKKKans have a race problem and for 400 years have always had a race problem. First, deliberate genocide of a race, then the forced enslavement of another race and continuing and growing hatred of all races with melanin or obviously AA......trumpchump, bannon and millers election to rule this country PROVES my assertion.

[Orrex]

5. I've been reading horrifying accounts of a number of lynchings, as a matter of fact

ameriKKKans have a race problem and for 400 years have always had a race problem.

Absolutely 100% true.

My simple (and, incidentally, completely correct) rebuttal to the claim that Trump supporters aren't racist is "go fuck yourself."

[heaven05]

6. I second that, loudly

and wherever appropriate these days. Which is everywhere.

[Orrex]

2. Painter & Eisen are terrific, and they keep getting better

I've heard them a bunch of times on the radio, and they've become much stronger in presenting their case, whereas a few months ago they came across as a bit timid and uncertain.

On NPR yesterday, Steve Inskeep continued his effort to normalize the Trump administration, and played devil's advocate:

INSKEEP: Would each of you take your best shot at the thing that we do hear from the president's supporters, who essentially will say - well, they're successful. That's not a bad thing. And we understand that you're raising all these ethics concerns, but they're already rich. Why would they go and steal money and take advantage of the country when they're already rich? This is something that is said.

PAINTER: Well, the problem is they have to follow the law. And it's a criminal statute that says you may not participate in a government matter that will have an effect on your financial interests, regardless of what your motives are. It's a criminal offense. So there's a big problem here.
...
EISEN: And so we still need to see Trump's own tax returns. To answer your question, rich people, in my experience, sometimes want more.

(Emphasis mine)

In this brief segment, Painter completely neutralized the primary objection because that objection is irrelevant, and Eisen destroyed the insane fantasy that rich people who plot to seize power will suddenly behave once they get there.