Democrats ask White House about Trump son-in-law's potential conflicts

Three Democratic lawmakers questioned the White House on Wednesday over its handling of U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law's potential conflicts of interest now that he is serving as an official adviser.

Jared Kushner, a real estate developer who advised Trump during the presidential campaign, was cleared by the U.S. Department of Justice in January to serve as a White House senior adviser. Kushner, who is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka, has been given a wide range of domestic and foreign policy responsibilities, including working on a Middle East peace deal.

In a letter to Deputy White House Counsel Stefan Passantino, Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren and Tom Carper expressed concern over media reports that Kushner is maintaining some business interests, and asked how the White House plans to comply with laws that prohibit federal officials from profiting by government work.

"Neither the White House nor Mr. Kushner's attorneys, however, has confirmed which financial assets Mr. Kushner still controls," making oversight "impossible," they wrote with Elijah Cummings, the senior Democrat on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in the House of Representatives.

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