Trump transition team suggests sidelining top adviser over pay-to-play allegations

WASHINGTON (AP) — The top lawyer on Donald Trump’s transition team investigated a longtime adviser to the president-elect over allegations he used his proximity to Trump to score payments from those seeking roles or influence in the new administration.

The review conducted by lawyer David Warrington recommended that Trump aides sharply constrain adviser Boris Epshteyn’s access to the president-elect, according to a person familiar with the matter. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an internal matter.

The personnel drama spotlights the unusual and often-disorganized cast of characters around Trump who contributed to the chaos of his first term, some of whom are part of the transition to the second as he looks to build out his administration before he takes office on Jan. 20.

Among those Epshteyn is alleged to have sought payments from is Scott Bessent, Trump’s nominee to be treasury secretary. Bessent mounted a months-long campaign to win the job but was opposed by Epshteyn allegedly after the hedge fund executive didn’t agree to pay him a substantial retainer.

The review also examined a complaint from former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens, who resigned in scandal but has expressed interest in joining Trump’s administration. Greitens signed a declaration last week recounting a Nov. 7 conversation with Epshteyn that alleged that his “overall tone and behavior gave me the impression of an implicit expectation to engage in business dealings with him before he would advocate for or suggest my appointment to the President. This created a sense of unease and pressure on my part.”

Epshteyn isn’t accused of doing anything illegal — securing fees for access to senior government officials is the bread and butter of Washington’s lobbying establishment — but the investigation appeared designed to weaken or eliminate his prominent position within Trump’s orbit. The president-elect has long chafed at those he viewed as using him for their own personal gain.

“As is standard practice, a broad review of the campaign’s consulting agreements has been conducted and completed, including as to Boris, among others,” said Trump communications director Steven Cheung. “We are now moving ahead together as a team to help President Trump Make America Great Again.”

Veterans of other presidential campaigns and transitions said such a review was anything but standard, and Cheung did not comment on Epshteyn’s role going forward.

Epshteyn, who served briefly in a mid-level role in Trump’s first White House, became a central player in Trump’s life after he left office in 2021. He was one of the architects of Trump’s legal team and strategy as the former president faced an array of criminal and civil threats after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol and his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

Epshteyn himself was indicted on state charges in Arizona related to alleged efforts by Trump allies to subvert that election and has pleaded not guilty. He holds the title of senior counsel and senior adviser to Trump, but even before the review he was not expected to take a role in the incoming administration.

“I am honored to work for President Trump and with his team,” Epshteyn said in a statement. “These fake claims are false and defamatory and will not distract us from Making America Great Again.”

Eric Trump, the president-elect’s son who went to college with Epshteyn, told Fox News that if the reported allegations were true, his old friend might not be around the campaign much longer.

“Listen, I have known Boris for years, and I have never known him to be anything but a good human being,” Eric Trump said Monday. “So, that said, I will tell you, my father’s been incredibly clear. You do not, you do not do that under any circumstance. And, believe me, there will be repercussions if somebody was.”

The investigation into Epshteyn was first reported by the conservative website Just the News.

“I suppose every President has people around them who try to make money off them on the outside. It’s a shame but it happens,” Trump told the website. “But no one working for me in any capacity should be looking to make money. They should only be here to Make America Great Again.”

During the 2022 midterms, some in Trump’s orbit also represented candidates seeking his endorsement, leading to accusations that aides were profiting off their proximity to the former president.

___

Associated Press writer Jill Colvin in New York contributed to this report.

Zeke Miller, The Associated Press