Giving Mr. Trump’s nominees a pass
Donald Trump’s transition team and Senate Republicans are determined to railroad several nominees to his cabinet of billionaires and moguls through to confirmation without fully revealing business interests that could disqualify them, say people both inside and outside government who are working on the transition process.
This is unprecedented, potentially illegal, and the clearest sign yet of Mr. Trump’s cavalier attitude toward criminal laws preventing federal officials from profiting from public service.
Mr. Trump’s Senate allies are shirking their constitutional duty, attempting to rubber-stamp nominees without information that would help determine whether they merit the public’s confidence. The law doesn’t require Mr. Trump to shed his business interests, but the failure of his cabinet officials to do so could land them in jail.
Before Mr. Trump’s cabinet nominees begin their Senate confirmation hearings, they are required to file an extensive form, the 278, that lists stockholdings, business interests, board seats and other arrangements benefiting them, spouses, minor children, business partners or potential employers.
The Office of Government Ethics reviews incoming officials’ disclosures; flags potential problems; and negotiates an ethics agreement letter in which the nominee agrees to divest, resign or otherwise eliminate potential conflicts. The letter helps protect nominees if they are ever accused of deriving improper financial benefits from government service.
The process is thorough, and complicated for wealthy individuals with vast holdings. Penny Pritzker, a Hyatt Hotels heir now serving as commerce secretary, filed a 278 form that was 184 pages long, and she agreed to sell stakes in more than 200 entities.
Mr. Trump’s team has been far behind in this process. But instead of delaying hearings until his picks reveal their business ties, the transition team has joined some Senate Republicans in pushing to hold hearings without all the needed information — and in some cases pressuring the ethics office to sign off on incomplete disclosures. In one instance, a nominee filed an incomplete 278, and the transition team called the ethics office minutes later looking for an ethics agreement letter.
So far, the only nominees known to have filed complete 278s and signed ethics agreement letters are Senator Jeff Sessions, Mr. Trump’s choice for attorney general, whose hearing is set for Tuesday; Rex Tillerson, the Exxon chief picked as secretary of state, whose hearing is scheduled for Wednesday; and Mike Pompeo, the nominee for director of the Central Intelligence Agency, whose hearing is also set for Wednesday. Most of the rest have filed incomplete
disclosures, have not yet signed ethics agreement letters or have submitted nothing at all.
A hearing is scheduled on Wednesday for Betsy DeVos, the billionaire education lobbyist named to be education secretary, whose disclosures are woefully incomplete. Hearings for Elaine Chao, Mr. Trump’s choice for transportation secretary; Gen. John Kelly, for homeland security secretary; Ben Carson, for housing secretary; and Wilbur Ross, for commerce secretary are also scheduled for next week.
The Trump team’s failures could be the result of disorganization — or a lack of familiarity with the rules. Mr. Trump himself has not set an inspiring example. The ethics office is reportedly working with his lawyers to encourage him to do what the law demands of his cabinet: divest and enter office free of conflicts. He is the only incoming president in modern history who has refused to do so.
For his nominees to do the same would be a serious violation of the public trust, and would potentially violate the law.
Confirmation hearings should be postponed until the Senate has all the information it needs to conduct responsible votes on the people Mr. Trump has chosen to lead the federal government.