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How Trump's NASA Nominee Used a Nonprofit He Ran to Benefit Himself
Retweeted by David Fahrenthold: https://twitter.com/Fahrenthold
What in the world?
Link to tweet
Investigation finds that Jim Bridenstine, Trump’s pick to head NASA, led a small non-profit into big financial losses. Some of the losses involved the use of the non-profit’s resources to benefit a company Bridenstine co-owned and in which he’d invested.
Link to tweet
SELF-DEALING
How Trump’s NASA Nominee Used a Nonprofit He Ran to Benefit Himself
Rep. James Bridenstine’s nomination is already controversial. Evidence of self-dealing won’t help matters.
NICK SCHWELLENBACH
ADAM ZAGORIN
04.18.18 10:37 AM ET
Rep. James Bridenstine (R-Okla.) is a former Navy pilot with virtually no management experience in any large organization. But the Oklahoma Republican has been tapped by President Donald Trump to take over the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a federal agency with a budget of $18.5 billion, 18,000 federal workers, and over 60,000 contract employees.
For this lack of technical experience—along with a skepticism of climate change and opposition to LGBT rights — Bridenstine has faced sharp criticism on the Hill. But another issue may soon end up complicating his nomination. ... An investigation and review of public records by the Project On Government Oversight shows that, prior to his time in Congress, Bridenstine led a small non-profit organization into hefty financial losses. Some of the losses involved the use of the non-profit’s resources to benefit a company that Bridenstine simultaneously co-owned and in which he’d invested substantial sums of his own money.
Bridenstine, whose bid to be NASA’s next leader was advanced this week by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), has vehemently denied mismanaging the non-profit: the Tulsa Air and Space Museum. His stake in the separate company, the Rocket Racing League, has been well known. But the fact that he was using the Museum’s resources to benefit that company has not previously been covered by the press and now raises red flags for tax law experts.
"This is a classic example of the use of a charity's assets for private benefit," said Marc Owens, an expert on tax law at the firm Loeb & Loeb and former head of the Internal Revenue Services's non-profit compliance division. "This could have jeopardized the Museum's status as a tax-exempt organization" under the IRS code since its resources were used to provide him a significant private benefit.
How Trump’s NASA Nominee Used a Nonprofit He Ran to Benefit Himself
Rep. James Bridenstine’s nomination is already controversial. Evidence of self-dealing won’t help matters.
NICK SCHWELLENBACH
ADAM ZAGORIN
04.18.18 10:37 AM ET
Rep. James Bridenstine (R-Okla.) is a former Navy pilot with virtually no management experience in any large organization. But the Oklahoma Republican has been tapped by President Donald Trump to take over the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a federal agency with a budget of $18.5 billion, 18,000 federal workers, and over 60,000 contract employees.
For this lack of technical experience—along with a skepticism of climate change and opposition to LGBT rights — Bridenstine has faced sharp criticism on the Hill. But another issue may soon end up complicating his nomination. ... An investigation and review of public records by the Project On Government Oversight shows that, prior to his time in Congress, Bridenstine led a small non-profit organization into hefty financial losses. Some of the losses involved the use of the non-profit’s resources to benefit a company that Bridenstine simultaneously co-owned and in which he’d invested substantial sums of his own money.
Bridenstine, whose bid to be NASA’s next leader was advanced this week by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), has vehemently denied mismanaging the non-profit: the Tulsa Air and Space Museum. His stake in the separate company, the Rocket Racing League, has been well known. But the fact that he was using the Museum’s resources to benefit that company has not previously been covered by the press and now raises red flags for tax law experts.
"This is a classic example of the use of a charity's assets for private benefit," said Marc Owens, an expert on tax law at the firm Loeb & Loeb and former head of the Internal Revenue Services's non-profit compliance division. "This could have jeopardized the Museum's status as a tax-exempt organization" under the IRS code since its resources were used to provide him a significant private benefit.
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