Flynn kept Russia fees secret

Before resigning under pressure as US President Donald Trump's national security adviser, Michael Flynn submitted a personal financial disclosure form to federal ethics officials that failed to note speaking fees he received from Russia-related entities in 2015, new filings show.

Flynn later noted the payments on an amended form he signed on Saturday that listed among his sources of income the Russian Governmentbacked television network RT, a US air cargo company affiliated with the Volga-Dnepr Group and the US subsidiary of Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab.

The White House released both sets of the forms yesterday as part of documents detailing the financial holdings of top Administration officials.

Flynn's initial form was submitted to the Office of Government Ethics and the White House on February 11 — just days before he was forced to leave his post amid controversy over his contacts with Russia's ambassador. On the document, he noted that he received fees through a speakers bureau, but he did not detail the names of the organisations that paid to have him as a speaker.

A person familiar with his filing said Flynn's initial form was a draft that would have gone through the usual process of review and revision in con- Donald Trump’s White House has been confirmed as the richest in history as the voluminous wealth of those he has appointed was laid bare. Financial disclosures required of government employees showed 27 Administration officials were together worth at least US$2.3 billion ($3.2b). Among the revelations were that the President’s son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner, and daughter, Ivanka Trump, both of whom have taken senior positions in the White House, were the beneficiaries of a sprawling property, investment and fashion empire worth up to US$740 million. Since Trump’s inauguration, Kushner has resigned from executive positions with more than 260 businesses and sold off 58 assets that were identified as potential conflicts of interest in his new role as senior adviser to the President. Kellyanne Conway, sultation with the White House Counsel's Office and the Office of Government Ethics. However, that process was suspended when Flynn resigned. In recent days, White House officials asked him to finish the process and advised Flynn that he needed to itemise each organisation that paid to have him counsellor to the President, was valued at up to US$40 million and Steve Bannon, Trump’s chief strategist, was worth between US$13 million and US$56 million. A slim majority — 52 per cent — of Americans favour an independent investigation into the Trump campaign’s ties with the Russian Government, according to a new poll by AP-NORC Centre for Public Affairs Research. Most Americans say they’re at least somewhat concerned about the possibility that the Republican businessman’s campaign had inappropriate contacts with the Russian Government, but less than half say they’re very concerned. as a speaker, the person said.

Flynn first acknowledged in July that he had been paid for the December 2015 RT event in Moscow, where he sat with Russian President Vladimir Putin during a celebration for the network. He later confirmed that the network provided his payment. — Washington Post