White House to share financial information about top staff

WASHINGTON – The White House says it will share financial information about some top staff members on its website late Friday.

President Donald Trump, a billionaire New York businessman, has hired some of the wealthiest people to ever serve in government. Their financial assets must be detailed in documents accessible to the public, and the Trump administration is continuing President Barack Obama's tradition of warehousing that paperwork on the website.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer described the business people who have joined the administration as "very blessed and very successful," and said the disclosure forms will show that they have set aside "a lot" to go into public service.

Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump just this week agreed to serve as a government employee, triggering the need for her to file financial disclosures. Her husband, Jared Kushner, a senior adviser to Trump, also must file, as must economic adviser Gary Cohn, a former Goldman Sachs executive.

It is unclear whether the Friday disclosures will include all of the aides.

Financial information for members of Trump's Cabinet who needed Senate confirmation has, in most cases, been available for weeks through the Office of Government Ethics.

The president must also file periodic financial disclosures, but he is not required to make another disclosure until next year.