April 28, 2017

Senators' press conference slams "drain the swamp" lie and more.

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WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall led Senate and House Democrats in a press conference to discuss President Trump's many broken promises to "drain the swamp” of special interests during the first 100 days of his administration. As Udall said, in spite of his pledges to return Washington the people, President Trump has stocked his administration with billionaires and lobbyists, refuses to adhere to essential transparency precedents, continues to conceal his ties to Russia, and is caught in a stunning web of conflicts of interests that could violate the U.S. Constitution and other ethics laws.

During the press conference, Udall and the Senate and House Democrats unveiled a special report on the extensive list of broken promises from the Trump administration to "drain the swamp” of special interest power.

Udall was joined at the press conference by U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), and U.S. Representatives Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.), Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), John Sarbanes (D-Md.) and Katherine Clark (D-Mass.).

Below are Udall's opening remarks as prepared for delivery.

"As a candidate for president, Donald Trump's promised over and over again that he would 'drain the swamp' in Washington.

"He promised to return Washington to the people, and to rid it of lobbyists and special interests. It was literally Trump's rallying cry.

"It is stunning how quickly he broke that promise. And it's deeply disturbing how many times he has violated it in his first 100 days.

"His cabinet is the wealthiest in modern history. It is stocked with lobbyists and special interest representatives.

"He has rolled back President Obama's ethics standards, and yet has broken his own weaker rules repeatedly.

"He claims to have no ties to Russia, even as the FBI says it is investigating him for his connections.

"He promised open, honest government. Yet he berates the media and he has refused to continue President Obama's policy of publishing the White House visitor logs.

"The American people have a right to information about who has access to the president. But President Trump doesn't want them to know.

"Mr. Trump promised to relinquish control of his business. Yet, he and his family continue to do deals. And they're blatantly profiting from the presidency.

"The list goes on and on. It seems Mr. Trump is determined to dig the swamp deeper, and make it murkier than ever before.

"Just yesterday, he proposed a massive tax cut that would benefit himself and the other multi-millionaires and billionaires in his cabinet.

"But we can't be sure just how much this tax plan would help Mr. Trump and his family — because to this day, the president refuses to release his tax returns.

"You have our report, 'President Trump's Broken Promises to 'Drain the Swamp.''

"It's long. But it represents a mere fraction of the ways Mr. Trump has made himself one of the most ethically challenged presidents in modern memory.

"We are part of a bicameral group of Senators and members of the House who are dedicated to shining a bright light on President Trump's murky swamp.

"We are holding him accountable this week – and as long as he is president.

"My colleagues are joining me today to give more details about the report.”

EDIT: fixed the link