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WASHINGTON—President-elect Donald Trump is taking steps to separate himself from his business “in total in order to fully focus on running the country,” responding to criticism that his global real-estate empire might pose unprecedented conflicts of interest for a U.S. leader.
Mr. Trump, in a series of Wednesday Twitter posts, wrote that “Legal documents are being crafted which take me completely out of business operations. The Presidency is a far more important task!”
Mr. Trump said he would reveal details at a New York news conference with his children on Dec. 15.

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Donald Trump will enter the White House with a vast number of potential conflicts of interest regarding his business dealings. So why isn't he beholden to the same rules as everyone else?

During the presidential campaign, Mr. Trump said he would fully sever himself from the Trump Organization, an umbrella company that operates the family’s businesses. Many of the firm’s newest investments are overseas.
Last week he suggested he might reverse himself, saying he legally could retain his role in the business operations. On Wednesday he took a different tack.
“I feel it is visually important, as President, to in no way have a conflict of interest with my various businesses,” he said on Twitter.

In the past, Mr. Trump has said he would set up a blind trust with his children in charge, though legal experts have said that would be unworkable because he would still retain influence in their decisions. Based on his description of the change of ownership in the Twitter posts, it doesn’t appear that the arrangement would be a traditional blind trust if his children are playing senior roles.

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U.S. law exempts the president and vice president from conflict-of-interest rules, which require many federal employees to recuse themselves from decisions involving their financial interests.
Jonathan Macey, a professor of corporate law at Yale Law School, said putting his business in his children’s hands is likely one of the few options Mr. Trump had if he wanted to address the appearance of a conflict of interest. Mr. Macey added the public nature of many of Trump Organization’s properties around the world will make it almost impossible for Mr. Trump to fully distance himself from any knowledge that might affect the company’s success.
“It’s all going to depend on his strength of character,” Mr. Macey said. “Is he committed enough to being a public servant that he will put the interest of the country ahead of his business interests?”
Richard Painter, who served as the chief ethics lawyer in the George W. Bush administration, said Mr. Trump would face a number of pitfalls if he retained ownership of the company, even if he spins off control of the operations to his children.
For example, if he retains ownership of the company, and a foreign government spends money at his properties, it could trigger a provision in the U.S. Constitution known as the emoluments clause, which says “no person holding any office or profit or trust under them, shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept any present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state.”
“If he does not divest ownership, there are a number problems we are going to have to deal with,” Mr. Painter said.
Hotels, resorts, and private clubs around the world bear Mr. Trump’s name and brand. Of the 29 first foreign leaders he spoke with following his election, he had real-estate related projects in eight of their countries.
Mr. Trump can’t easily give his children the business because of the 40% federal gift tax that would apply. The children could borrow money to purchase the company from him, though that would also likely have tax consequences.
If his children take the lead in running the business, and Mr. Trump retains a large financial stake, he could still face criticism about conflicts of interest.
“Unless his solution is to sell the business outside the family and put the proceeds in a blind trust, he’s not really doing anything to solve the problem,” Noah Bookbinder, executive director of the Washington advocacy group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said.
The Trump Organization, originally called Elizabeth Trump & Son, has been controlled by his family since the 1920s. Mr. Trump took control of the business in the 1970s. His adult children Ivanka, Eric, and Donald Jr. already play a senior role in the company, and he has long said he planned to hand over control to them. But he has wavered on the timing of this change in recent weeks.

—Richard Rubin contributed to this article.

Write to Damian Paletta at damian.paletta@wsj.com

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Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Donald Trump Says He Will Leave His Business 'in Total'

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Donald Trump Says He Will Leave His Business 'in Total'

Donald Trump Says He Will Leave His Business ‘in Total'

President-elect responds to criticism about conflict of interest

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