Trump's Conflicts Of Interest Will Be Continual But, As President, He Will Violate One Contract
The Trump presidency will be a constant conflict of interest, especially with his myriad of overseas “investments”, more properly called licensing deals. But it is especially galling to think that taxpayers will actually be paying Trump in order to protect him. Trump has already announced that Melania and Barron will be staying in New York until the school year ends. Trump has also said that he will be returning to Trump Tower frequently during his term. With that in mind, the Secret Service is looking to rent a couple of floors in Trump Tower in order to protect Trump and his family. The price tag for such a rental could come to $3 million per year. In essence, the Secret Service would be paying Trump in order to provide the protection he needs. As the article says, Trump could be absolutely correct in saying he “could become the first presidential candidate to run and make money on it”, as he did all the way back in 2000.
On the other hand, someone in the federal or Washington DC government was on the ball when they leased the Post Office which is now the home to another deluxe Trump hotel. Apparently, the lease was written so that no elected official could benefit from the lease. Specifically the lease says, “No … elected official of the Government of the United States … shall be admitted to any share or part of this Lease, or to any benefit that may arise therefrom”. On January 20th, Donald Trump will be in violation of this lease. It will be interesting to see what unique theory Trump and his lawyers come up with in order to escape this particular clause in the contract.