- A government ethics office has rejected Kanye West’s financial announcement of his 2020 presidential election.
- West failed to disclose his wife Kim Kardashian West’s income on the form, which is unusual.
- According to an ethical watchdog group, the lack of disclosure is probably the reason why the form was not accepted.
- See more stories on Insider’s business page.
The Federal Office of Government Ethics refuses to sign off on rapper Kanye West’s financial disclosure forms from his failed presidential campaign in 2020, according to a document obtained by the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
Jordan Libowitz, communications director at CREW, wrote in a Monday blog post that the agency’s highly unusual move is likely due to the fact that West did not fully disclose his wife, Kim Kardashian West,’s income and assets, as Insider’s Dave Levinthal also reported in July 2020.
Because there is no law requiring presidential candidates to release their tax returns, “federal disclosure is the only mandate to review a presidential candidate’s or president’s finances,” Libowitz told Insider.
“It is very important to know from a transparent point of view where money goes to officials or candidates, as well as to know that it is correct and complete,” he said.
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Walt Shaub, the former OGE director under the Obama and Trump administration, told Insider in July that candidates should be required to report income areas to their spouses in almost all circumstances, which could mean the agency does not confirm the disclosure. .
On the form, West claims to be exempt from Kardashian West’s income by citing a law stating that federal candidates can go without disclosing their income if they have no knowledge of the income stream, it is not related with their own economic activities, and they do not expect to derive a financial benefit from it.
“It’s not just that he did not report it, but that he used a release, and a fairly rare one, to report. It said, among other things, that he had no knowledge of what her assets were or where. “Her income does not come from. And it seems a little hard to believe,” Libowitz told Insider.
Kardashian West, whose beauty and fashion businesses include KKW Beauty and Skims, is her participation in the reality show Keep up with the Kardashians, and trademark notes, Forbes has a net worth of $ 1 billion. West’s net worth is estimated by the outlet at $ 1.8 billion.
“It would be different if he left it empty, but to claim that an exemption for which he did not qualify is beyond doubt,” Libowitz said.
The couple married in 2012 and are now divorcing. CREW said West filed the personal financial disclosure four months before Kardashian filed for divorce.
Libowitz also noted that West did not disclose information and assets to three trusts he himself listed on the form as a trustee.
“While the inconsistencies may not lead to Western fines and are unlikely to lead to prosecution, it is a fairly important issue, especially if there are already questions about money related to his campaign,” Libowitz said.
West’s quixotic presidential campaign, almost entirely self-funded, has struggled in many states to get the vote and has rejected numerous petitions due to a large number of invalid or fraudulent signatures.
The campaign also had several inputs with the Federal Electoral Commission for the submission of disclosure reports with deviations and red flags that, according to a Daily Beast report, include ‘several donations from minors, multiple possible contributions from foreign nationals and various false names and addresses. it tracks to warehouses on both coasts.