Trump Owes Ethics Exemption to George H.W. Bush
When President-elect Donald Trump touts his exemption from federal conflict-of-interest laws, he might want to offer a word of thanks to those who made it possible: President George H.W. Bush and the U.S. Congress.
As Trump faces a flood of stories about how his businesses could complicate his work as president, he made clear Tuesday that he’s well aware that that the key federal legislation aimed at separating personal interests from official responsibilities does not apply to the president.
“The law’s totally on my side: the president can’t have a conflict of interest,” Trump said during a roundtable at The New York Times. “I’d assumed that you’d have to set up some type of trust or whatever and you don’t [but] I would like to do something.”