Trump Commits to Keeping his Conflicts of Interest

During a farce of a press conference this morning where despot-elect Donald Trump referred to CNN as "fake news" and said there will be "consequences" for Buzzfeed, one of Trump's lawyers announced his plan to avoid preserve his conflicts of interest.

Management of the Trump Organization will be turned over to Trump's sons Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, but Donald himself will retain ownership.

Sheri Dillon of the law firm Morgan Lewis said that all assets in “what is commonly known as the Trump Organization” would be put into a trust, and that Trump would resign from leadership positions in the Trump Organization.

Trump’s sons, Eric and Donald Jr., would run the Trump Organization, Dillon said, while Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, would not be involved in the company.

Dillon said the despot-elect will not be involved in company business, but you'd have to be unbelievably gullible to buy the idea that Trump won't discuss business with his own family.

Even if that were true, Trump will retain ownership of the so-called "trust," meaning every decision Trump makes after he's sworn in could have an impact on his personal financial assets. Trump will also continue to personally benefit from his holdings in foreign countries where his financial interests may conflict with American foreign policy.

In other words, Trump has committed to violating the Constitution on his first day in office. Unfortunately, it may not matter if those who have the power to do something about it (Congress) chose to do nothing.

Many people who know better than I do have speculated why Trump will not or cannot completely divest from his own company. Aside from his natural disdain for the rule of law, some ethics lawyers and tax experts have speculated that Trump may be so deeply leveraged that liquidating his assets would result in bankruptcy.