Know the extent of his financial conflicts including significant debt held by foreign banks because he continues to hide his tax returns. This is a especially concerning in terms of the continuing ref havelations of his ties to russia. There is every reason to worry that foreign businesses and governments will have too much influence over trumps decisions and that trump will provide special favors and treatment to Business Partners. Already a month into his presidency, the trumps continue to promote their private business interest, going so far to have their products hawked from the White House Briefing room. We are honored to have congressman sarbanes join us at cap today because he distinguished himself as a leader on capitol hill in fighting for political reform and against big money in politics. In light of his leadership, the congressman was appointed to lead the House Democracy Reform Task force and leader pelosi called congressman sarbanes a relentless champion fighting for integg integrity and transparency americans want to from their elected officials. He has a comprehensive plan spear headed by the congressman to strength err our democracy. The task force is working to con front the Trump Administration conflicts and expose the special interests driving much of the current agenda on capitol hill. Congressman sarbanes has represented marylands Third District in the u. S. House of representatives for the past decade. Were proud to have congressman sarbanes working with us to bring lights to the threats to democratic norms. To discuss how we can fight back. Please joan me welcoming the congressman. [applause] good afternoon, everybody. It is, it is great to be here. I want to thank you, carmel, for your introduction. I want to thank cap, the center for American Progress for inviting me here today and hosting this very, very important discussion. Im not sure there is a more important discussion we could be having at this particular time. I want to thank you, carmel, for joining us recently at the deblock sy Reform Task ForceDemocracy Reform Task force and that cap is doing and releasing Important Information to this topic of conflicts of interest. I also want to thank liz kennedy for her great work and her continued support. Im looking forward to the discussion today from ambassador eisen and Robert Weissman and we have a terrific panel were looking forward to. Here is where im going to start this discussion. Donald trump told us, toil told us, the American People, that he would look out for us. That he was going to fight for us. That is what he said. A little over four weeks ago, seems like eons ago, four weeks ago i sat there on the west front of the capitol and i heard the president make a very important and central promise to the American People. Here is what he said. For too long a small group in our nations capitol has reaped the rewardeds of government while the people have borne the costs. Washington flourished but the people did not share in its wealth. Politicians prospered, but the jobs left and the factories closed. The establishment protected itself but not the citizens of our country. That all changes, he said starting right here and right now. Because today we are not merely transferring pow are from one administration to another, or from one party to another, we are transferring power from washington, d. C. , and back to you, the people. Thats what he said at his inauguration. Now i trust that most of you in this room when you heard that promise, and i think many americans, when you heard it, it rang hollow. You saw it for what it was, rhetoric that was designed to distract from what we now see are the president s real motives. You were right to be wary of that promise. President trump does not appear to be transferring power to the people. What he seems to be doing is pulling the power closer to himself, to his family, to his brand, to his business, and to his buddies. Hes broken from all precedent as carmel alluded to a moment ago, by entering office with a sprawling web of business assets and conflicts of interest. All too eager, it seems to subordinate the office of the presidency to the interests of the Trump Organization. He has flouted the constitution, by receiving numerous emoluments, both foreign and domestic, and will continue to do so should he not take meaningful steps to relinquish ownership of his many business assets. He has shown no inclination to do that. He has been unrepentant in repeatedly refusing to adhere to the basic norms of integrity, that have always governed our nations highest office. Even rebuffing the chorus of americans of all political stripes who are asking that he release his tax returns. A minimal expression of acknowledgement and appreciation of these basic standards. To make matters worse, the president has surrounded himself, pretty much through the cabinet appointment process at this time, with a cabinet full of senior officials who themselves appear to be rife with similar conflicts of interest. Taking a cue from the top, and theyre primed to capitalize on their newfound positions of power. These are the not actions of a man committed to giving power back to the people, or to lifting up the voice of the voiceless, the people left behind by a broken system in washington. But the reason i read the president s words at the outset from his inauguration is i wanted to ground the discussion here today to remind each of us, the assembled experts, the press, concerned citizens, that out in the country his promise to give power back to the powerless, and the disrespected, to give a voice to the voiceless, still has great resonance and appeal. And the truth is if people believe he is making good on that promise, then his ethical lapses and conflicts of interest will be viewed as tolerable. For those who seek to preserve our die mock sy and ethical laws and norms which under didder it. This is our challenge. Forging and understanding in the public that President Trumps contempt for basic standards of trust and integrity is not trivial. It is not a harmless sideshow. Rather it strikes at the core of his ability to serve the people. It harms their interests, the Public Interest. A lot of ink has been spilled and will probably continue to be spilled chronicling the president s breathtaking number of conflicts. Let me cite a few for the record. His 940 milliondollar loan from the bank of china. His unknown level of Foreign Investment from russian oligarchs. His pending trademark litigation in china. His Business Partnership with the newlynamed special envoy from the philippines, appointed by the brutal president , rodrigo dutert. His sons continued pursuit of business deals every day. There is another one, around the globe with the impramtue with the United States government being place on those ventures. Many business assets in turkey, United Arab Emirates and saudi arabia, elsewhere all of which have the potential to distort the president s official actions. The list goes on. Some americans, including my own constituents for sure, are very closely tracking this. I mean every news story that comes out that sheds light on the president s conflicts of interest, theyre watching this. Theyre deeply concerned about his cabinet officials. And the policy that he might pursue. But many and certainly it seems the vast majority of Republican Voters are not yet concerned by these conflicts. He may be a scoundrel some people might say, but he is our scoundrel. No surprise then that my colleagues in congress on the other side of the aisle have been unwilling to engage in meaningful oversight of the new administration. But heres the point we need to make. And i really want to emphasize this, President Trump is not just suffering from pettily lapses that will somehow will come out in the wash over time, his complete disregard for ethical norms and against constitutional corruption if unchecked will cause grave harm to our nation as a whole and to the situation of everyday americans. His conduct threatens to weaken our National Security, to corrode peoples faith in our institutions of democracy, and to advance special interests at the expense of the Public Interests. Put bluntly, the president is breaking his promise. He is aggrandizing power to himself, not transferring it back to the American People. That is why discussions like the one being held today are so important. We must begin to bring clarity to how President Trumps corruption affects how it harms the interests of the regular americans. Otherwise they will give him a pass, and are called to arms will be just an academic exercise. The white paper being released today by the center for American Progress, written by liz kennedy and danielle root lays bear the risk posed by trumps many conflicts of interest and those of his cabinet. It he details how those conflicts of interest are risks to National Security, to u. S. Foreign policy, to the integrity of u. S. Elections, to the free and fair operation of u. S. Economic markets and dedication to the Public Interest and rule of law. To reiterate, we must embrace analysis of the president s conduct. It makes clear his conflicts and those of his cabinet do in fact harm the Public Interest. This paper and i hope the discussion that follows today, will help make the turn in the public debate from an ever of expanding laundry list of jarring conflicts, to a more sober analysis of how those conflicts imperil the interests of american households and the broader Public Interests. This is critical and i applaud the center for American Progress for its work. I want to offer a sober reminder about the role of congressional oversight, picking up on my earlier comment. President trump has been president for a little over a month and its important to remember there are 47 month to go. So pace yourselves. Of the while Republican Leadership has been reluctant to engage in any meaningful oversight of the conflicts that i have discussed and well hear more about today, the politics of the not static. Americans are flooding town halls, and urging representatives at that take oversight of the administration. Congressman that ignore those calls do so at their own peril. The more the public focuses on the specific harm of trumps come flynn, the more that pressure will build. As the current chair of the House Democracy Reform Task force i can assure you House Democrats will be at the forefront in exposing the risks the President Trumps conflicts present. We are already pursuing remedies that can bring about the oversight that is demanded. Democrats this week in the House Judiciary Committee will vote on a resolution of inquiry from my colleague jerry nadler that would begin investigations into the Trump Administration es conflicts of interest and potential and improper ties to russia. Republicans are likely to block this effort but they will have to explain if they do. In the same vain, many of my colleagues, my colleagues offered legislation would require President Trump to release his taxes, therefore bioffering full picture of his finances and sources of conflicts. The tack force is making plans to go outside of the beltway, Holding Field hearings across the country on these issues and allowing americans of all political stripes to learn more about the risks that we face, the paper that you have released today will be very important to that effort. And finally, were working daily with our Standing Committees in the house and our partners in the senate to monitor emerging risks and to seek answers from the administration when appropriate. President trump promised at his inauguration to give power back to the powerless and to give a voice to the voiceless. Americans must insist he follow through on that promise and if he doesnt follow through, they have to hold him accountable. With reports like the one being released today we can empower americans to judge for themselves. In other words, lets give people the information. Let them draw the conclusion about whether the president is operating with divided loyalties. Whether he is looking out for the people or looking out for himself. I want to finish today by reading an excerpt from a book called, lincoln leadership by donald phillips, a couple paragraphs, i think can kind of drive home the point of this integrity. I will put my glasses on for this part. Moniker honest abe was resurrected for the president ial campaign in 1860. A major component of the Republican Campaign hype. It was plastered on Campaign Posters and appeared in cartoons and newspapers across the country. It was part of a National Crusade that painted lincoln as one of the common people. A railsplitter from illinois who was honest beyond question. It is remained in the american stream of consciousness to this day as the perhaps the most glorified part of the lincoln myth but as american fill loss officer William Hocking noted think are myths which displace truth and myths which give wings to truth. In this case abraham lincolns reputation for honesty and integrity even though challenged over the years, has remained unblemished. In fact, as knowledge is gained about the real man, it is largely enhanced. Myth in this case has become reality. Lincoln was just as hon as he has been purported to be if not more so. Without question honesty is one of the major qualities that made him a great leader. The architecture of leadership, all the theories and guidelines falls apart without honesty and integrity. It is the keystone that holds an organization together. Tom peters reported that the most aggressive and successful organizations were the ones that stressed integrity and trust. Without a doubt he stated honesty has always been the best policy. Managers do things right, leaders do the right thing. And james mcgreg gore burns warned, divorced from ethics leadership is reduced from management and politics to mere it being nokia. Thats good stuff. Technique. Looking at that, in our history im concerned there resides deep in the psyche of the American People an abiding of appreciation of integrity and honesty in their leaders. Depart from that on occasion and the people can forgive. Make it your operating procedure, to dissemble and deceive and the consequence can and should be severe. Americans need to ask very simply, whose side is the president on and can we trust him. Their answer to that question will decide his political fate. Thank you all very much. [applause] thank you so much to representative sarbanes for those really terrific remarks. I think beautifully explaining the extent of the situation were currently facing. And, well be focusing on the real consequences here today with this distinguished panel, all of whom are now here. But i think i really appreciate the grounding us in the real strength of americas democracy through the years is really a question of integrity. Im joined today, im liz kennedy, director of democracy in government reform here at the center for American Progress. Thank you so much all for joining us and im joined by rob been robert wise man, president of Public Citizen since 2009. They are a counter veiling force of public power. Executive Branch Agencies and court to insure all citizens are represented in the halls of power before working at Public Citizen weissman was director of corporate accountability at central action. Thank you for joining us here today. Norm eisen, founder and back as chair of the citizens for responsibility and ethics in washington crew be. Crew works to reduce the influence of money in politics and to foster a government ethical and accountable of the he is a fellow with government studies at brookings. Before that he served as the u. S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic under obama and under the Obama Administration and president obamas ethics czar where he established the Ethical Practices of that administration. So lots to share from norm. Really thrilled to be joined by my cap colleague, i think an important voice in these, in this question of the dangerous impacts of trumps conflicts, vick singh. Served as secretary of defense for Southeast Asia in the pentagon for 2011. I was special representative for afghanistan and pakistan at the u. S. Department of state. He also served in the u. S. Department of defense as Senior Advisor on afghanistan and pakistan and hello a number of roles in the department of defense over these many years. So, thank you all some for joining us. Lets just start by asking so, rob, after Kellyanne Conway stood in the White House Briefing room telling fox viewser