Sarbanes Delivers Keynote at CAP on Trump’s Conflicts of Interest

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Democracy Reform Task Force Chair Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) today delivered a keynote address at a Center for American Progress event titled, “Risks and Remedies for Trump’s Conflicts of Interest.”

A video of the Congressman’s remarks, along with a transcript, is below.

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Exposing the Risk and Harms of Trump’s Corruption

First, I want to thank the Center for American Progress for inviting me here today and for hosting this important discussion.

Carmel Martin, thank you for your leadership and joining the Democracy Reform Task Force briefing in the House of Representatives a few weeks back.

I also want to thank Liz Kennedy for all your good work and continued support – I very much look forward to the discussion with Ambassador Eisen, Robert Weismann, and Vikram Singh.

Donald Trump told us he was going to look out for Us.  That he was going to fight for Us.

A little over four weeks ago, I sat looking out over the Capitol’s west lawn and heard our new President make a critical promise to the American people:

“For too long a small group in our nation’s Capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost. Washington flourished – but the people did not share in its wealth. Politicians prospered – but the jobs left, and the factories closed. The establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our country.”

“That all changes – starting right here, and right now."

“Because today we are not merely transferring power from one administration to another, or from one party to another -- but we are transferring power from Washington, D.C. and giving it back to you, the American People.”

That’s what he said.

I trust that when most of you heard what appears to be that promise, it rang hollow – rhetoric, designed to distract from his true motives.

You were right to be wary.

He is not transferring power to the people.  He is pulling it towards himself!  His family.  His brand.  His buddies.

• He has broken from all precedent by entering office with a sprawling web of business assets and conflicts of interests, all too eager to subordinate the Office of the Presidency to the interests of the Trump Organization.
• He has flouted the Constitution by receiving numerous “emoluments” both foreign and domestic and will continue to do so should he not take meaningful steps to relinquish ownership of his many business assets.
• And he has been unrepentant in repeatedly refusing to adhere to the basic norms of integrity that have always governed our nation’s highest office -- even rebuffing the chorus of Americans of all political stripes – who are asking that he release his tax returns.

To make matters worse, the President has surrounded himself with a cabinet full of senior officials who are rife with similar conflicts of interest and primed to capitalize on their newfound positions of power.

These are not the actions of a man committed to giving power back to the people; to lifting up the voice of millions of American who feel left behind by a broken system in Washington.

But I read the President’s words from his inauguration to ground our discussion here today; to remind each other – the assembled experts, the press, and concerned citizens – that out in the country, his promise to give power back to the powerless and disrespected; to give a voice back to the voiceless – still has great resonance and appeal.

And the truth is that if people believe he is making good on that promise, his ethical lapses, his conflicts of interest will be viewed as tolerable.

For those who seek to preserve our democracy – and the ethical norms and laws which undergird it – this is our challenge: Forging an understanding in the public that Trump’s contempt for standards of trust is not trivial –  it is not a harmless sideshow.  Rather, it strikes at the core of his ability to serve the people.  It harms their interest – the public interest.

Much ink has been spilled chronicling the breathtaking number of conflicts of interest that President Trump has:

• His $940 million loan from the Bank of China
• His unknown level of foreign investment from Russian Oligarchs
• His pending trademark litigation in China
• His business partnership with the newly named special envoy from the Philippines appointed by the brutal President Rodrigo Duterte
• His son’s continued pursuit of business deals around the globe, with the imprimatur of the United States government
• His many business assets in Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia and elsewhere, which may distort the President’s official actions

The list goes on.  Some Americans – including my own constituents for sure – are closely tracking every news story that sheds light on the President’s conflicts of interest and are deeply concerned about his cabinet officials and the policy they might pursue.  But many -- and certainly the vast majority of Republican voters – are not yet concerned by these conflicts.

“He may be a scoundrel,” some might say, “But he’s our scoundrel.”

No surprise then that my colleagues in Congress on the other side of the aisle – have been unwilling to engage in meaningful oversight of the new Administration.

But here’s the point we need to make.

President Trump is not just suffering from petty lapses that will somehow come out in the wash.  Instead, his complete disregard for ethical norms and the constitutional protections against corruption, if unchecked, will cause grave harm to our nation as a whole and to the situation of everyday Americans.

His conduct threatens to:

• Weaken Our National Security
• Corrode People’s Faith in Our Institutions of Democracy
• And Advance Special Interests at the Expense of the Public Interest

Put bluntly, the President is breaking his promise.  He is aggrandizing power to himself, not transferring it back to the American people.

That is why discussions like the one being held today are so important. We must begin to bring clarity to how Trump’s corruption affects – how it harms – the interests of regular Americans.  Otherwise, they will give him a pass and our call to arms will be just an academic exercise.

The white paper released today by the Center for American Progress, written by Liz Kennedy and Danielle Root lays bare the risks posed by Trump’s many conflicts of interest and those of his cabinet.

It details how Trump’s many conflicts of interest are a risk to:

• National Security;
• U.S. Foreign Policy;
• The Integrity of U.S. Elections;
• The Free and Fair Operation of U.S. Economic Markets;
• Dedication to the Public Interest; and
• The Rule of Law

To reiterate, we must embrace an analysis of the President's conduct that makes clear that his conflicts – and those of his cabinet – do in fact harm the public interest.

This paper – and, I hope, the discussion that follows today – will help make the turn in the public debate from an ever-expanding laundry list of jarring conflicts to a more sober analysis of how those conflicts imperil the interests of American households and the broader public interest.

This is critical and I applaud the Center for American Progress for its work.

I want to offer a sober reminder about the role of Congressional oversight – picking up on my earlier comments.

President Trump has been President for a little over a month. It is important to remember there are forty-seven months to go.

While Republican leadership has been reluctant to engage in any oversight of the conflicts I have discussed today, the politics of the moment are not static.

Just this week, Americans across the country have flooded town halls, urging their representatives to take oversight of this Administration seriously. Members of Congress who ignore these calls do so at their own peril. And, again, I firmly believe, the more the public focuses on the specific harm of Trump’s conflicts, the more that pressure will build.

As the current Chair of the House Democracy Reform Task Force, I assure you House Democrats will be at the forefront in exposing the risks posed by Trump’s conflicts.

Democrats are already pursuing remedies that can bring about the oversight that is demanded. This coming week, the House Judiciary Committee will vote on a ‘Resolution of Inquiry’ from my colleague Jerrold Nadler that would begin investigations into the Trump Administration’s conflicts of interest and potential improper ties to Russia. Republicans are likely to block this effort, but will have to explain if they do.

In the same vein, many of my colleagues have authored legislation that would require the President to release his taxes, thereby offering a full picture of his finances and sources of conflicts.

The Task Force is also making plans to take this discussion outside the beltway – holding field hearings across the country on these issues and allowing Americans of all stripes to learn more about the risks we face.

Simultaneously, we are working daily with our Standing Committees in the House and our partners in the Senate to monitor emerging risks and to seek answers from the Administration when appropriate.

President Trump promised at his inauguration to give power back to the powerless and to give voice back to the voiceless.  Americans must insist that he follow through on that promise and if he does not, they must hold him accountable. 

With reports like the one being released today, we can empower Americans to judge for themselves whether the President is operating with divided loyalties, whether he’s looking out for the people or looking out for himself. 

 I want to finish by reading an excerpt from Lincoln on Leadership by Donald Phillips:

The moniker “Honest Abe” was resurrected for the presidential campaign in 1860. A major component of the Republican campaign hype, it was plastered on campaign posters and appeared in cartoons and newspapers across the country. It was all part of a national crusade that painted Lincoln as one of the common people, a railsplitter from Illinois who was honest beyond question. It has remained in the American stream of consciousness to this day, as perhaps the most glorified part of the Lincoln myth.

But as American philosopher William Ernest Hocking noted: “there are myths which displace truth and there are myths which give wings to truth.” In this case, Abraham Lincoln’s reputation for honesty and integrity, even though challenged over the years, has remained unblemished. In fact, as knowledge is gained about the real man, it is largely enhanced. Myth in this case has become reality. Lincoln was just as honest as he has been purported to be, if not more so. Without question honesty is one of the major qualities that made him a great leader.

The architecture of leadership, all the theories and guidelines, falls apart without honesty and integrity. It’s the keystone that holds an organization together. Tom Peters reported in his research that the best, most aggressive, and successful organizations were the ones that stressed integrity and trust. “Without doubt,” Peters stated, “honesty has always been the best policy.” “Managers do things right. Leaders do the right thing,” wrote Bennis and Nanus. James MacGregor Burns warned: “Divorced from ethics, leadership is reduced to management and politics to mere technique.”

I am convinced that there resides deep in the psyche of the American people an abiding appreciation of integrity and honesty in their leaders. Depart from that on occasion and the people can forgive.  Make it your operating procedure to dissemble and deceive and the consequence can and should be severe.

Americans need to ask very simply, “Whose side is the President on?” and “Can we trust him?” Their answer to that question will decide his political fate.

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