The Official POTUS Account and the Nordstrom Dispute

2017-02-08

The Official POTUS Account and the Nordstrom Dispute

contradicted

Promised: 2017-01-11At Trump's January 2017 press conference, counsel for the Trump Organization said the arrangement would isolate him from the business, bar new foreign deals and donate foreign-government hotel profits to the Treasury.Open cited record · 2 sources
The record: 2017-02-08Trump posted criticism of Nordstrom from his personal account, and the official POTUS account retweeted it.Open cited record · 2 sources2017-02-08The White House defended the message as a father's response to what the president viewed as an attack on his daughter.Open cited record · 1 source
Who gained: Ivanka Trump brand
Who paid: Nordstrom
United States public
Audit finding: contradicted
An official presidential communications channel amplified a message defending the president's daughter's private brand, contrary to the announced separation of office and family business communications.
Causal strength: documented mechanism

Evidence chronology

promise2017-01-11documented
At Trump's January 2017 press conference, counsel for the Trump Organization said the arrangement would isolate him from the business, bar new foreign deals and donate foreign-government hotel profits to the Treasury.
- Time: Read a Transcript of Donald Trump's Press Conference on Conflicts of Interest2017-01-11 · Sheri Dillon remarks: no new foreign deals, limited information rights, compliance counsel, and donation of foreign-government hotel profits
- U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform: Oversight Committee Requests Documents on Trump Organization's Treatment of Foreign Government Payments2017-04-21 · Bipartisan committee letter describing the January pledge and requesting implementation records
Open underlying ledger entry
action2017-02-08documented
Trump posted criticism of Nordstrom from his personal account, and the official POTUS account retweeted it.
- TIME: White House Says Nordstrom Decision Was Direct Attack on President Trump2017-02-08 · Tweet, official-account amplification and White House response
- U.S. Office of Government Ethics: Public comments concerning President Trump's Nordstrom tweet2017-02-10 · Screenshot and text of the personal-account tweet retweeted by the official POTUS account
Open underlying ledger entry
outcome2017-02-08reported
The White House defended the message as a father's response to what the president viewed as an attack on his daughter.
- TIME: White House Says Nordstrom Decision Was Direct Attack on President Trump2017-02-08 · Tweet, official-account amplification and White House response
Open underlying ledger entry
limitation2017-02-10documented
The available record documents official amplification but does not quantify any private financial gain or loss caused by it.
- TIME: White House Says Nordstrom Decision Was Direct Attack on President Trump2017-02-08 · Tweet, official-account amplification and White House response
- U.S. Office of Government Ethics: Public comments concerning President Trump's Nordstrom tweet2017-02-10 · Screenshot and text of the personal-account tweet retweeted by the official POTUS account
Open underlying ledger entry

Responses, legal status, contrary evidence, and limitations

limitation
The available record documents official amplification but does not quantify any private financial gain or loss caused by it.