President-elect Trump’s transition team should “explain what happened” to “draining the swamp” with the selection of Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., for secretary of health and human services, given recent allegations about politically-motivated stock purchases by Price, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Tuesday.
“This doesn’t seem like a complicated scheme; this seems like exactly the kind of financial entanglement that’s left a lot of people feeling alienated from Washington D.C.,” Earnest said.
Price has faced criticism following a CNN report that detailed an investment his financial adviser made in a medical device manufacturer shortly before he introduced legislation last year that would have aided such companies. The firm’s political action committee later gave $2,000 to Price’s congressional campaign.
The transition team has denied any impropriety and has noted that Price began working on the legislation long before the series of transactions.
“Was he sponsoring that legislation because of his own financial motive?” Earnest said. “It’s hard to know.”
But the White House press secretary stopped short of accusing Price of illegal activity.
“If law enforcement officials choose to investigate this situation, that’s something that they will do” based on their understanding of the “pretty concerning” facts of the case, Earnest said.
He encouraged Senate Republicans to join Democrats in questioning the financial relationship Price had with the medical device company when they confront him at his confirmation hearing later this week.
“I suspect this is going to be an issue that’s going to receive careful scrutiny,” Earnest added.
