The Trump Organization on Friday announced a new ethics agreement that governs how the family of Donald J. Trump and the president-elect will conduct themselves over the next four years to avoid conflicts of interest. Federal Conflict of Interest Laws.
The actions outlined in the document largely reflect pledges made by Trump’s family when he first became president eight years ago. This includes appointing an outside ethics lawyer to review major family business transactions worth more than $10 million, holding assets owned by President Trump in a trust and limiting access to detailed financial information about the company.
But unlike eight years ago, the Trump family is not promising to stop making new international real estate deals. Instead, reflecting the plan first shared with the New York Times in December of last year, they only agreed to “prohibit new transactions with foreign governments.”
“We are going beyond that,” Eric Trump told the Times on Friday.
Ethics lawyers quickly dismissed the measure as insufficient, citing the Trump family’s separate disclosure this week that it would host an April golf tournament at the Trump National Doral Resort in Miami. The tournament is sponsored by LIV Golf, a new league created and financed by the Saudi government. This deal will generate hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue.
“If the president receives a benefit or benefit from a foreign government, as well as new deals, he is violating the Constitution,” said Richard W. Painter, a former White House ethics lawyer during the George W. Bush administration. There have been long-standing criticisms of President Trump’s handling of ethics issues. “The flow of funds must stop on January 20th.”
The ethics pledge included the announcement that William A. Burck, a prominent ethics attorney at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, will serve as outside counsel for the family firm. He will review acquisitions or sales of real estate worth more than $10 million, major leases in buildings owned by the Trump family, new loans or even loan refinancing transactions, transactions with federal or state governments, and claims against foreign governments.
“It is an honor and privilege to work with such a great company during this unprecedented and pivotal time in its storied and storied history,” Burke said in a statement Friday.
Mr. Burke was a former federal prosecutor and White House counsel during the George W. Bush administration. He is a respected and well-known figure even among President Trump’s critics in Washington.
He has previously been involved in legal matters involving President Trump. He represented several witnesses, including former Trump White House aides Stephen K. Bannon and Reince Priebus, in the special counsel’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Mr. Burke was also interviewed to defend Mr. Trump in a criminal case accusing him of improperly taking classified documents after he left office in 2020. But Mr. Burke ultimately refused to join the team.
The ethics agreement also requires the Trump family to donate profits from smaller deals with foreign government entities, such as having diplomats or other government representatives stay at Trump-owned hotels or resorts, a move the Trump family also took in the first step. no see. management.
According to the pledge, Trump will receive “general business updates” but will not have access to detailed financial information. He will have “no involvement in the management of the company,” including “no role in day-to-day decision-making.”
The Trump family has also pledged to provide discounts on club and hotel room rates for the Secret Service and other government agencies to protect the president-elect or his family.
During President Trump’s first term, these bills accumulated more than $1 million and attracted significant public attention. They sparked accusations that the Trump family was imposing excessive costs on the federal government, charges the family disputed.
Norman L. Eisen, a former ethics lawyer in the Obama White House, said the new agreement was insufficient because Trump could still use his position in the White House to drive business for family hotels, golf courses and private hotels. Clubs at Mar-a-Lago and more. The family may also rely on his power to close new real estate deals.
“These kinds of self-imposed restrictions made no sense under the first Trump administration and will no longer be effective under the second,” said the National Democracy Defenders Fund, which tracks ethical and legal issues in the new administration. Mr. Eisen, who created an organization called Fund) said. management.
The agreement does not address potential ethics issues that may arise from the Trump family’s relationship with World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency company that the Trump family helped start. The Exchange Commission, which regulates cryptocurrencies.
The agreement also does not address potential conflicts that could arise from Trump’s majority stake in Truth Social, a social media platform he created after leaving the White House. President Trump has used the platform to make dozens of public announcements about his Cabinet selections and other actions as president-elect. Truth Social is a publicly traded company. This means that anyone can buy the company’s stock and even try to boost the stock price to the benefit of President Trump and his family.
During President Trump’s second term, his family plans to continue signing new real estate deals with partners around the world. In recent months it has done so for branded hotels and golf resorts in Dubai, Vietnam and Saudi Arabia, generating millions of dollars in revenue for the family.
The Trump family has also held discussions in recent weeks with companies controlling the debt of the former Trump International Hotel in Washington, which operates out of a federally owned building and is now branded as the Waldorf Astoria.
The lease on the building was sold by the Trump family in 2022, but the buyer subsequently defaulted on the loan. Talks about potentially buying back control of the hotel are at a very early stage, an executive involved in the matter said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the informality of the talks.
It is still unclear whether such a deal will materialize. During the Trump administration, this hotel was used as a gathering place for President Trump’s lobbyists and supporters, as well as foreign diplomats visiting Washington. The move to regain control may create more questions about the conflict.
The president and vice president are the only executive branch officials exempt from conflict of interest laws, which require federal officials not to take any action that could benefit or dispose of any assets that could benefit from actions they take. yourself or your family.
But the president is subject to the so-called Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, which prohibits federal employees from receiving anything of value from foreign governments. This provision was filed during Trump’s first administration, but was not resolved when Trump left office, leading to a lawsuit that was dismissed as controversial.
Maggie Haberman contributed to the report.
