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Trump Faces Conflict of Interest Accusations over Nordstrom Tweet

HeadlineFeb 09, 2017

President Trump is facing allegations of potential conflicts of interest after he attacked the department store Nordstrom in a tweet from his official government account, saying, “My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom. She is a great person — always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!” The tweet came after Nordstrom announced it was dropping Ivanka Trump’s clothing line—a business decision the company says was “based on performance.” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer claims Nordstrom’s decision was “an attack” on Trump’s daughter. But multiple reporters have questioned how this is an attack on Ivanka Trump, given that she had claimed she had stepped away from her clothing line after Trump’s election. Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey has referred the tweet to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics. Ivanka Trump has no official government role, but she frequently sits in on top meetings with her father, and her husband, Jared Kushner, is a senior adviser in the White House. Meanwhile, in another potential conflict of interest, the Department of Defense is looking to rent office space in Trump Tower in Manhattan—which means the government might end up funneling money directly to one of Trump’s businesses. CNN reports that renting a floor in the tower costs about $1.5 million every year.

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