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NEW YORK: US President-Elect stands with his children Ivanka and Donald Jr during Trump’s press conference at on Wednesday. — AFP Trump under fire over business plan Ethics watchdog slams lack of full divestiture

NEW YORK: Donald Trump said Wednesday sons from his first marriage and are current- Weisselberg, currently the company’s chief standards that the best of his nominees are he had handed complete control of his busi- ly, with their sister Ivanka, executive vice financial officer, will assist the Trump sons meeting and that every president in the last ness to his adult sons but stopped short of a presidents in . in running the business, according to four decades has met,” said Walter Shaub, full divestment, earning a swift rebuke from Trump said manila files covering a table next Dillon. Daughter Ivanka, whose husband holding up secretary of state nominee Rex the government ethics watchdog. Trump, to the lectern were the signed documents Jared Kushner will be a special adviser to Tillerson, who stepped down as CEO of the wealthiest man ever to ascend to the US “turning over complete and total control to the president, will have no further involve- ExxonMobil, as a model to follow. presidency, has until now run the Trump my sons”, before handing the stage to his ment in the business. Tackling head on why Shaub said the refusal to engage in new Organization whose network of hotels, golf lawyer, a Washington law firm partner. The Trump would not divest, Dillon alleged that deals does not solve the problem of existing clubs and luxury residences stretches across attorney, Sheri Dillon, defended the plan selling “would not eliminate possibilities of business interests, and called on Trump to 20 countries but is not listed on the stock saying it would “completely isolate” Trump conflicts of interest. In fact, it would exacer- divest fully. “Nothing short of divestiture will market, thus releasing no public statistics. from the management of his business during bate them.” resolve these conflicts,” he said. “This isn’t The 70-year-old billionaire has so far his presidency and that no new foreign deals The president-elect “should not be the way the presidency has worked since flouted recommendations that he sell off all “whatsoever” would be made during his expected to destroy the company he built,” Congress passed the ethics and government his assets in a blind trust to avoid any suspi- time in the White House. said Dillon. “Selling the entire Trump organi- act in 1978 in the immediate aftermath of cion of corruption or conflict of interest. As zation isn’t even feasible,” she added. the Watergate scandal,” he added. he prepares to be sworn in as America’s 45th ‘Not feasible’ Instead the plan would “sever” the presiden- According to PrivCo, which seeks to pro- president in nine days, Trump still refuses to All pending deals - more than 30 - were cy from the Trump Organization and in addi- vide financial and business information on release his tax returns, claiming they are canceled, causing a “financial loss of millions tion Trump will donate all proceeds from any private companies, The Trump Organization under audit, meaning relatively little is of dollars” to Trump and his children, said foreign officials to his hotels to the US employs about 22,000 people and had rev- known about the extent of his interests. “My Dillon, a partner in the firm Morgan, Lewis & Treasury, she said. enues of $9.5 billion in 2014. Trump closed two sons, who are right here, Don and Eric, Bockius. Under the plan, an ethics advisor his press conference by joking that if his sons are going to be running the company,” the would review and give written approval to Sub-standard did a bad job, he would come back in eight president-elect told a news conference in any “new deals, actions, and transactions But the head of the Office of Government years and tell them “‘you’re fired’” using his New York. “They’re not going to discuss it that can potentially raise ethics or conflicts Ethics publicly criticized the plan, saying it catchphrase from his reality TV show “The with me,” he added. of interest concerns,” she said. fell short of the example set by command- Apprentice”. “#nopressure,” tweeted Don Jr Don Jr, 38, and Eric, 32, are Trump’s eldest Longtime Trump associate Allen ers-in-chief for 40 years. “It doesn’t meet the shortly afterward. — FP