Spotlight: Questions over possible nepotism swirl around Trump presidency

Before President-elect Donald Trump has even taken office, there are glaring questions over what role the billionaire's children will play in the new administration. That is because recent moves have sparked worries that Trump's kids will overstep the legal boundaries that ban nepotism in the White House.

The New York real estate mogul shocked the world last month when he clinched the election after the overwhelming majority of pundits, polls and analysts predicted that rival Hillary Clinton would win.

But already, Trump is spurring worries of nepotism. Last week, the nation's top tech executives met with Trump to discuss how they might work together with government to boost the U.S. economy. Participating in the meeting were Trump's children, Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Eric, as well as Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. Kushner has already raised eyebrows for allegedly speaking to a lawyer about how he could circumvent anti-nepotism laws and play a role in the new administration.

A 1967 federal anti-nepotism law, which was implemented after former President John Kennedy gave his brother, Robert Kennedy, the position of attorney general, states that no official can hire a member of his or her family.

"It is a serious problem. The issue is that they are deeply involved in the family business and so meetings like this blur the line between Trump's interest and the national interest," Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University, told Xinhua. He was referring to Trump's children and how they plan to run the Trump business empire while their father is president.

"This is why there are many calls for him to create a firewall with the Trump industry," Zelizer said.

"It is clear that the kids will play a role in the administration, as advisors and as critical players in influencing policy," he said.

"There are clear nepotism laws put into the books after Robert Kennedy's appointment, but previous administrations have challenged rigid boundaries, including the Clintons... The conflict of interest laws are very lax for the president, but members of Congress are now pushing for tighter definitions of the rules for the executive branch," Zelizer said.

Last month, the incoming Trump administration already caused raised eyebrows on a number of fronts, including the role that the president-elect's son-in-law might play in the new government. The New York Times reported that Kushner spoke to a lawyer to find out if it would be legal, under federal anti-nepotism laws, for him to play a role in the White House.

This came just days after Kushner, who played a major advisory role in Trump's campaign, fired New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a major Republican Party figure who was expected to hold a position in the new administration.

Critics are also concerned about the blurring of lines between government service and running a wildly lucrative business, as Kushner heads a major real estate business and owns the New York Observer newspaper.

Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Darrell West told Xinhua that Trump does not appear to understand the nepotism and conflicts of interest represented by this behavior.

"His children will be running his business empire in coming years and he is positioning them to benefit financially from his service as president. This is a blatant conflict and will raise great controversy within the United States. It moves the country closer to crony capitalism than has been the case in many decades," he said.

"He doesn't understand the need to separate his personal financial interests from his government service. He is surprisingly tone deaf to how this looks to any knowledgeable outsider," West said. Enditem