CREW files conflict of interest complaint against Ivanka Trump
CONTACT: Jordan Libowitz
202-408-5565 | [email protected]
Washington — Ivanka Trump appears to have violated federal conflict of interest law by personally and substantially participating in the Trump administration’s implementation of a new tax law authorizing the Opportunity Zones program while her husband, Jared Kushner, held financial interests worth millions of dollars in an entity benefitting from that program, according to a complaint filed today by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) with the Department of Justice.
Under the law, executive branch employees are prohibited from participating “personally and substantially” in matters that have a direct and predictable effect on a financial interest of the employee or their spouse. Trump directly worked on the implementation of the Opportunity Zones program in 2018, including multiple events at the White House and in behind-the-scenes work with relevant officials. During this time, Kushner held significant financial interests in Cadre, a company that offers investment vehicles under the Opportunity Zones program.
“Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner have continued to conduct themselves in ways that create a real possibility that they are capitalizing on their roles as government officials to enrich themselves,” said CREW Executive Director Noah Bookbinder. “Government employees should never work on matters affecting their own finances, but Ivanka Trump appears to have done just that. Her actions are just the latest example of this administration’s blatant and repeated disregard for ethics obligations, and must be thoroughly investigated.”
Trump’s financial disclosure report reveals that she entered the government with financial interests in Cadre worth between $5,000,000 and $25,000,000. Her newest financial disclosure report shows that the value has grown to $25,000,001-$50,000,000 during her time in government. In that report, Trump specifically acknowledged the need to recuse “from particular matters in the broker-dealer, real estate, and online financial services sectors to the extent they would have a direct and predictable effect on Cadre.”