Inside Story

Will conflicts of interest drag down Donald Trump?

In first press conference as president-elect, Donald Trump says he rejects claims of Russian campaign against him.

US President-elect Donald Trump says he is already working on creating jobs, replacing “Obamacare” health insurance and appointing a new Supreme Court judge.

However, reporters repeatedly returned to questions about Russia at his first press conference since winning the election.

After weeks of denials, Trump for the first time accepted that Russian hackers tried to influence the presidential vote, but rejected allegations of a Russian campaign to blackmail him. 

The news conference highlighted a tangle of potential problems and conflicts of interest.

Trump announced he would be distancing himself from his global real estate business.

The director of the US office of government ethics criticised Trump’s plan to let his sons run the family empire.

Presenter: Laura Kyle

Guests:

Jack Kingston: former Republican Congressman and senior adviser to Trump’s election campaign

Raisa Sheynberg: Former director of international economic affairs, National Security Council

Inderjeet Parmar: Professor in international politics, City University of London