• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 

2

Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics

3

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises

1

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 

2

Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics

3

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
LeadershipPolitics

Ethics Watchdog Calls for Probe into Kellyanne Conway’s Ivanka Trump Promotion

By
The Associated Press
The Associated Press
and
Michelle Toh
Michelle Toh
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
The Associated Press
The Associated Press
and
Michelle Toh
Michelle Toh
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 14, 2017, 11:57 PM ET

The U.S. government’s ethics watchdog urged the White House to investigate and possibly discipline President Donald Trump’s counselor Kellyanne Conway for comments she made about Ivanka Trump’s fashion line, according to a letter made public Tuesday.

The Office of Government Ethics wrote to White House attorneys that there was reason to believe that Conway violated the standards of ethical conduct for executive employees by endorsing the president’s daughter’s products during a television interview last week.

The government ethics office’s recommendation was the latest in a series of complications for Conway.

Just Monday, Conway said in a television appearance that National Security Adviser Michael Flynn had Trump’s full confidence, hours before Trump fired him. Over the past few weeks, Conway has also referred to a “Bowling Green Massacre” that never occurred, and she was caught up in a public feud with news network CNN, which said it decided not to have her on a Sunday show.

Asked about Conway’s remarks on Flynn, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said Tuesday that Trump’s decision to ask for Flynn’s resignation unfolded over time. “It was an evolving and eroding process,” Spicer said. “Once (President Trump) has determined he has made the decision on any subject, that’s when he informs the staff. So, going into the day, it was an evolving situation.”

Conway has said she misspoke about the massacre and disputed CNN’s characterization of why she didn’t appear on their show, saying she was unavailable. In an interview on NBC’s “Today” show on Tuesday, Conway denied that her comments about Flynn’s future were inconsistent with his standing with Trump, saying “both were true.”

The comments that got Conway in hot water with ethics officials came during a Feb. 9 interview on Fox News.

Appearing from the White House briefing room, Conway urged viewers to “go buy Ivanka’s stuff” before adding that she was going to “give a free commercial here. Go buy it today everybody, you can find it online.”

The comments came a day after Trump tweeted that he believed his daughter had been treated “unfairly” by the department store Nordstrom, which had recently dropped the fashion line. The company has said the decision was not political, but was based on declining sales.

In the letter to the White House, Walter Shaub, the director of the government ethics office, wrote that Conway’s comments appear to be a “clear violation of the prohibition against misuse of position.”

Spicer, the White House spokesman, said last week that Conway has been “counseled” about her comments, but the government ethics office said it has yet to receive any guidance on what if anything happened as a corrective action. The White House didn’t immediately respond to questions sent via email Tuesday.

The letter notes lawyers for the White House and the government ethics office spoke on Feb. 9, the day of Conway’s interview, and that Rep. Jason Chaffetz, the Utah Republican chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform committee, and Rep. Elijah Cummings, the committee’s ranking Democratic member from Maryland, asked OGE to follow up. Chaffetz has said that Conway’s comments were “wrong, wrong, wrong” and “clearly over the line.”

The government ethics office is requesting that White House lawyers tell them in writing by Feb. 28 what they’ve done about Conway’s comments. The office advises executive branch officials on abiding by ethics laws and rules but doesn’t have investigative or enforcement authority.

About the Authors
By The Associated Press
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By Michelle Toh
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Leadership

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Leadership

elon
SuccessIPOs
SpaceX IPO targets $28.5 trillion total addressable market, mission to ‘make life multiplanetary’ and understand ‘true nature of the universe’
By Nick LichtenbergMay 20, 2026
2 hours ago
Elon Musk sits with his fists together, looking up.
Commentaryspace
SpaceX will be worth trillions, but the space station that made it possible is worth even more — if we don’t squander it
By Tejpaul BhatiaMay 20, 2026
3 hours ago
Clinical Psychologist Daniel Wendler
ConferencesWorkplace Innovation Summit
A ‘proudly autistic’ workplace expert says putting neurodivergent employees in a typical office is like dropping a polar bear in Austin, Texas
By Tristan BoveMay 20, 2026
4 hours ago
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can’t explain why they pay what they pay
Workplace CultureWorkplace Innovation Summit
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can’t explain why they pay what they pay
By Sydney LakeMay 20, 2026
4 hours ago
Professor Jeff DeGraff.
SuccessWorkplace Innovation Summit
‘We’ve given them the short end of the stick’: Business school dean says AI could eliminate many jobs for young people—even as they lead innovation
By Preston ForeMay 20, 2026
5 hours ago
A dating expert says ghosting and quiet quitting are the same problem at their core, and corporate life has more to learn from romance than it admits
Workplace CultureWorkplace Innovation Summit
A dating expert says ghosting and quiet quitting are the same problem at their core, and corporate life has more to learn from romance than it admits
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezMay 20, 2026
5 hours ago

Most Popular

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Workplace Culture
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
1 day ago
Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics
Future of Work
Meet a 21-year-old community college student who's going to China as the first American woman welder in the trades Olympics
By Mike Householder and The Associated PressMay 17, 2026
3 days ago
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
Politics
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
By Jake AngeloMay 12, 2026
8 days ago
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
Success
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
By Preston ForeMay 20, 2026
9 hours ago
Current price of oil as of May 19, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of May 19, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 19, 2026
1 day ago
Spirit Airlines apologizes to all the Americans who can't afford any summer vacation flights as it shuts down
Travel & Leisure
Spirit Airlines apologizes to all the Americans who can't afford any summer vacation flights as it shuts down
By Rio Yamat and The Associated PressMay 18, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.