Waters: Clayton's Strong Wall Street Ties Highlight Trump's Conflicts of Interest

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, issued a statement following President-elect Trump's nomination of Wall Street lawyer and Goldman Sachs adviser Jay Clayton as the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), a major regulator of banks and Wall Street:

"With this latest pick, Donald Trump is fervently continuing his campaign of nominating Wall Street insiders to regulate Wall Street. Jay Clayton is just the latest addition to the growing pool of Wall Street insiders that make-up the Trump Administration. Donald Trump himself owes Wall Street banks hundreds of millions of dollars. Trump's preference for Wall Street insiders calls into question his priorities: is he truly aiming to represent the American people or is he rewarding his pals on Wall Street? The nomination of Jay Clayton is clear evidence that Trump favors the latter.

"Jay Clayton has made a career of representing big banks and investment houses on Wall Street, oftentimes in litigation with the Federal government for allegations including foreclosure fraud that harmed low and middle income Americans. As head of the SEC, Clayton will have the power to carry his pro-Wall Street agenda to the agency that is entrusted with regulating Wall Street. This nomination of a Wall Street insider to regulate Wall Street proves that Donald Trump has no intention of getting tough on Wall Street."

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