Congressional Democrats have asked the Government Accountability Office to review President-elect Trump’s transition for a conflict of interest related to Trump’s business, “violations of protocol and national security concerns.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., sent the letter Wednesday to the GAO, citing reports of “disarray” in Trump’s transition process.
Democrats have criticized Trump following reports he discussed business with at least one foreign leader and allowed daughter Ivanka to sit in on a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Ivanka Trump’s presence at the meeting raised conflict of interest questions because she is among the family members her father plans to put in charge of his business empire.
Warren and Cummings said they believe the GAO scrutiny of Trump is justified because $9.5 million in federal funding is provided for the transition process.
“Mr. Trump’s apparent conflicts of interest — and his behavior during the campaign and after his election — raise questions about the use of taxpayer funds during the transition, and about the decisions made during the transition that will affect federal government policies under the Trump administration,” the lawmakers wrote in the letter to GAO.
