The normalization of conflicts of interest in the USA and their potential impact on public health nutrition

Of the many criticisms surrounding the current Trump administration, one of the most unsettling is blatant conflicts of interest (CoIs). Numerous cases of the potential for profiteering by Trump officials and their families have sparked public outcry. These incidents include US government renting of Trump Tower space for an estimated US $3M of taxpayer money per year (1), Donald Trump entertaining foreign dignitaries at his Mar-a-Lago resort (2), First Daughter Ivanka Trump receiving Chinese trademarks (3), Education Secretary Betsy DeVos retaining substantial investments in a company that produces Attention Deficit Disorder therapies for children (4), and Jared Kushner’s sister flashing her ties in the White House to potential investors (5). While a cloud of secrecy remains over the names of many Trump deregulation appointees (we wonder why...), at least 28 of those identified have lobbied the agencies for which they now work, have former employers who will profit from deregulation, or stand to personally profit from deregulation (6). These and other routine CoIs emerging from the government is thus causing widespread international concern that CoIs will be normalized in the Trump era. Alarmed at this possibility, we here discuss how this kind of behavior can impact public health nutrition.