Trump Friend Carl Icahn Profiting From Setting Policy In New Administration
Trump is letting his rich friends write the rules to regulate their own companies.
Billionaire investor Carl Icahn was given a new role in his buddy Donald Trump’s administration helping to set policy and remove regulations on the oil and gas industry. But here is the thing, Carl Icahn owns massive financial interests in the oil and gas industry.
And according to a new report, Icahn has profited in a big way from his role in the Trump administration. Bloomberg reports that Icahn’s CVR Energy Inc “saved about $60 million in the first quarter because of expectations that the federal government will ease a regulation involving renewable fuels, securities filings show.”
Officially, Icahn is a special regulatory adviser to Trump. Meaning Icahn gets to tell Donald Trump what regulations he thinks need to be done away with. And wouldn’t you know, Icahn has lobbied for the regulations that affect him financially.
Bloomberg goes on to note that “Icahn’s cost savings show how the Trump administration has let officials’ outside business interests influence policy decisions.”
And the report quotes Richard Painter who was White House ethics counsel under President George W. Bush who says Icahn’s role in the Trump administration is “a clear conflict of interest.”
You can read the full Bloomberg report here.
