CONTACT: Jordan Libowitz
202-408-5565 | [email protected]

Washington— Following news that Ivanka Trump would be closing her namesake fashion brand, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) Executive Director Noah Bookbinder released the following statement:

“While this is a notable step in the right direction, it’s a small one that comes much too late. She reportedly realized that there were too many potential conflicts of interest to avoid, something many observers warned about from the beginning. The many ethics issues arising from her business were not limited to Ivanka Trump herself—Kellyanne Conway was reprimanded for doing a ‘free commercial’ for the brand from the White House.

Ivanka Trump received trademarks from the Chinese government that concerningly coincided with several of her father’s actions towards China. Though the business is ‘shutting down,’ it will reportedly continue to file for new trademarks, which raises questions as to how serious this ‘shut down’ really is and whether the brand will continue to create conflicts of interest.

The ethics issues that arise from her ownership of the Ivanka Trump Brand also arise from her ownership stake in the Trump Organization, and still more issues arise from her father’s ownership of that business. If the Trump family truly cared about ethics, they would fully divest themselves of these assets—something they should have done before they entered the White House.”