Prof. Richard Painter Quoted by CNN About Conflict of Interest With Trump Business Merger

Professor Richard Painter, S. Walter Richey Professor of Corporate Law, was quoted by CNN about the Trump Media & Technology Group a $6 billion merger with TAE Technologies, a company at the leading edge of fusion energy. The merger means that Trump will have a major financial interest in a company whose fortunes will be influenced by the actions of a government that Trump presides over. In addition, the merger needs to be approved by federal regulators — some of whom were nominated by Trump. Prof. Painter said this is a clear conflict of interest. He said, “Every other president since the Civil War has divested from business interests that would conflict with official duties. President Trump has done the opposite.” He added that anyone other than the president or the vice president could be committing a crime if they participated in a U.S. government matter that they knew they had a financial interest in. He said, “It’s only legal because the criminal conflict of interest statute does not apply to the president,” adding that while it is “technically legal” he doesn’t believe presidents should be excluded from the law.