Former Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin took three post-presidency business trips to the Middle East in February, April and June, 2021 that cost taxpayers up to $253,000 in Secret Service protection alone

John: Ordinarily, a former Cabinet secretary would not qualify for Secret Service protection, but Trump granted a six month extension of protection for three members of his administration and his adult children, which cost taxpayers $1.7 million.

Mnuchin was the single most expensive person for the Secret Service to protect over that period.

Mnuchin’s tours of the Middle East started just a few weeks after he left the administration, and seem to have been oriented around securing funds for his private equity firm – receiving over $1 billion from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE – and opening an office in Tel Aviv.

The quick transition from representing the U.S. government to asking countries for investments in Mnuchin’s private investment fund just months later is a serious ethics issue.

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During the Trump administration, Mnuchin’s involvement with the region went beyond what was typical. He visited the Middle East and met with the leaders of sovereign wealth funds more than previous Treasury secretaries.

Just like Jared Kushner, who also launched a private equity firm with significant Middle Eastern investments after leaving the administration, Mnuchin was involved in projects in the Middle East during his time in the administration.

We don’t know the extent to which their personal post-administration business interests played a role in their decision making on foreign policy in the cabinet and the White House. But we do know that they exposed serious gaps in criminal conflict of interest law that need to be filled.

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Team CREW