Kushner, considering White House role, eyes business exitJared Kushner, President-elect Donald Trump's son-in-law and one of his closest advisers, is taking steps to distance himself from his sprawling New York real estate business in what is the clearest sign yet he is planning to take a position in the new administration.
Kushner, who is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka, must clear a series of hurdles before he takes any post in Washington. He will need to argue that a federal anti-nepotism law that bar officials from appointing relatives to government positions does not apply to him as well as eliminate potential conflicts of interest between his family's multi-billion dollar real estate empire and his government duties....
....In addition to working through that nest of potential conflicts, Kushner has also been consulting lawyers about a federal anti-nepotism law that bars officials from appointing relatives to government positions. The 1967 law, which was seen as a response to President John Kennedy selecting his brother Robert Kennedy as attorney general, would also be a potential obstacle for Ivanka Trump, who is also expected to have a role in her father's White House.
Some Trump advisers have argued that the law does not apply to the White House, only Cabinet agencies.
"The anti-nepotism law apparently has an exception if you want to work in the West Wing, because the president is able to appoint his own staff," Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway said in December. "The president does have discretion to choose a staff of his liking."
As precedent, some Trump backers have pointed to the woman the president-elect defeated in last year's bitter White House race: Hillary Clinton. President Bill Clinton's decision to put his wife in charge of his health care reform efforts was challenged in court, but two federal appeals judges said the anti-nepotism law did not appear to cover White House staff appointments.
But if Trump finds White House roles for his daughter and son-in-law, he's walking an ethical tightrope that could set a precedent for future presidents, said Norm Eisen, who served as President Barack Obama's chief ethics counselor....
...If he takes a government post, his presence in the West Wing would add another power center in a White House that is shaping up to be top heavy. Incoming chief of staff Reince Priebus and senior adviser Steve Bannon were announced as "equals." Conway, who will serve as counselor to the president, is also likely to have autonomy and direct access to Trump.
Ivanka Trump has taken steps to leave her role at the Trump Organization, which the president-elect said would be run by company executives and his two adult sons, Don Jr. and Eric.
In a brief interview Friday with The Associated Press, Trump said he has a "very simple solution" for addressing his business ties, but would not detail the plans. He also suggested the matter was not important to Americans.
"When I won, everybody knew that I had a very big business and a very successful business," he said. "The voters knew that."...
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