Donald Trump's handling of his business empire is raising serious conflicts of interest issues for many New Yorkers, our NY1/Baruch College poll finds — even as Trump dismisses the concern as overblown. Our Grace Rauh has more.
Today was supposed to be the day that President-elect Trump explained exactly how he would remove himself from his business. But the much-anticipated announcement was postponed until January. The move is leaving many to question how Trump's plan to leave his sons in charge of the Trump Organization will alleviate conflict of interest issues for the President-elect.
"That's like corruption 101, to let the kids do it," said Zephyr Teachout. "And it hasn't worked out so well in other countries whether it is Berlusconi or in Thailand where you see business owners try to keep their businesses, they get rich while the country gets in trouble."
Former Democratic Congressional and gubernatorial candidate Zephyr Teachout protested outside Trump Tower, demanding Trump sell his assets and put them in a blind trust.
"I don't know if it's a blind trust if Ivanka, Don and Eric run it," Trump said on the campaign trail. "Is that a blind trust? I don't know."
An overwhelming majority of New Yorkers say Trump's turning over control of his business empire to his children will not do enough to eliminate conflicts.
The media tries so hard to make my move to the White House, as it pertains to my business, so complex - when actually it isn't!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 15, 2016
Mayor de Blasio has clashed with the President-elect and promised to block certain initiatives from the new administration.
Fifty-one percent of New Yorkers say they are very or somewhat confident the mayor can defend the city from quote: "harmful policies" proposed by Trump.
In addition, a majority of New Yorkers support the mayor's refusal to report undocumented immigrants to the federal government. They say he should continue doing that even if it leads to cuts in federal funding.
Meanwhile New Yorkers are not enthusiastic about the prospect of the future president spending weekends at Trump Tower. Most predict it will have a negative impact on the city. Only 12 percent think it will be positive.