Latest news with #conflictOfInterest
Reuters
14 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
US House Democrats raise concerns about T-Mobile role in Trump Mobile service
WASHINGTON, July 23 (Reuters) - Three Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee raised serious concerns about T-Mobile's (TMUS.O), opens new tab involvement in the Trump Organization's self-branded mobile service and a $499 smartphone dubbed Trump Mobile. Representatives Frank Pallone, the ranking member of the committee, and Doris Matsui and Yvette Clarke, asked T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert to answer questions about the company's dealings with the Trump Organization. "We are specifically concerned that T-Mobile's business relationship with the Trump Organization — while Donald Trump is serving as President of the United States — presents a conflict of interest that will harm the American people," they wrote in a letter Wednesday. T-Mobile did not immediately comment on Wednesday. Trump Mobile is powered by Liberty Mobile Wireless, a Florida-based company founded in 2018 by entrepreneur Matthew Lopatin. The company is a mobile virtual network operator, renting bandwidth from major carriers such as T-Mobile to offer its own service under a different name. "We are highly skeptical of the recent developments between T-Mobile and the Trump Organization and are deeply concerned about the legal and ethical implications of this arrangement, including on our nation's spectrum policies," the Democrats said, asking for answers to a series of questions by August 6. The lawmakers want Sievert to disclose whether he or any other employee had communications with Donald Trump, anyone representing the White House, or anyone representing the Trump Organization about Trump Mobile since January 20. They also want to know if the company has a deal directly with the Trump Organization and if so, how much it will receive. Republican Donald Trump began serving his second term as president on January 20. Earlier this month, the Federal Communications Commission approved two T-Mobile deals that would expand the wireless carrier's network, after the company ended its diversity, equity and inclusion programs under pressure from the Trump administration.
CNA
16 hours ago
- Business
- CNA
US House Democrats raise concerns about T-Mobile role in Trump Mobile service
WASHINGTON :Three Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee raised serious concerns about T-Mobile's involvement in the Trump Organization's self-branded mobile service and a $499 smartphone dubbed Trump Mobile. Representatives Frank Pallone, the ranking member of the committee, and Doris Matsui and Yvette Clarke, asked T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert to answer questions about the company's dealings with the Trump Organization. "We are specifically concerned that T-Mobile's business relationship with the Trump Organization — while Donald Trump is serving as President of the United States — presents a conflict of interest that will harm the American people," they wrote in a letter Wednesday. T-Mobile did not immediately comment on Wednesday. Trump Mobile is powered by Liberty Mobile Wireless, a Florida-based company founded in 2018 by entrepreneur Matthew Lopatin. The company is a mobile virtual network operator, renting bandwidth from major carriers such as T-Mobile to offer its own service under a different name. "We are highly skeptical of the recent developments between T-Mobile and the Trump Organization and are deeply concerned about the legal and ethical implications of this arrangement, including on our nation's spectrum policies," the Democrats said, asking for answers to a series of questions by August 6. The lawmakers want Sievert to disclose whether he or any other employee had communications with Donald Trump, anyone representing the White House, or anyone representing the Trump Organization about Trump Mobile since January 20. They also want to know if the company has a deal directly with the Trump Organization and if so, how much it will receive. Republican Donald Trump began serving his second term as president on January 20. Earlier this month, the Federal Communications Commission approved two T-Mobile deals that would expand the wireless carrier's network, after the company ended its diversity, equity and inclusion programs under pressure from the Trump administration.
Reuters
17 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
House Democrats raise concerns about T-Mobile role in 'Trump Mobile' service
WASHINGTON, July 23 (Reuters) - Three Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee raised serious concerns about T-Mobile's (TMUS.O), opens new tab involvement in the Trump Organization's self-branded mobile service and a $499 smartphone dubbed Trump Mobile. Representative Frank Pallone, the ranking member of the committee and two other committee members, asked T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert to answer questions about the company's dealings with the Trump organization. "We are specifically concerned that T-Mobile's business relationship with the Trump Organization — while Donald Trump is serving as President of the United States — presents a conflict of interest that will harm the American people," they wrote in a letter Wednesday.
New York Times
3 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Former NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell Jr. resigns from The Carlyle Group
Former NFL Players Association executive director Lloyd Howell Jr. resigned from his role at The Carlyle Group, a spokesperson confirmed to The Athletic on Monday. The spokesperson did not give details as to when or why Howell resigned. ESPN first reported the news. On Thursday, Howell resigned from his role with the NFLPA amid rising criticism over the union's leadership and concerns about a potential conflict of interest involving Howell and his involvement with The Carlyle Group. Advertisement As reported by ESPN on July 10, Howell worked as a paid, part-time consultant to The Carlyle Group since March 2023, three months before he was elected NFLPA executive director. He stayed in the role even after the NFL approved private equity minority investors, including The Carlyle Group, in August 2024. Two sources with knowledge of the NFLPA's hiring process told The Athletic that union leadership was aware of Howell's work with the firm during the hiring process. One year later, when the firm had the opportunity to invest in the NFL, four sources with knowledge of the situation said discussions about Howell's role occurred and lawyers for the NFLPA and The Carlyle Group decided Howell's work in the aerospace and defense division was distant enough from the group's work with the NFL. An NFLPA source with knowledge of the situation disputed details in the ESPN report, which stated that an NFLPA attorney had requested that Howell consider resigning from his role with The Carlyle Group while still serving as executive director of the NFLPA. Three other sources said they had not heard of an NFLPA lawyer making that request to Howell. Reporting from ESPN, Pro Football Talk and 'Pablo Torre Finds Out' uncovered layers of dysfunction within union leadership within the past month, including findings that the NFLPA reached a confidentiality agreement with the NFL to hide information about an arbitration decision involving potential collusion over guaranteed contracts. In a statement announcing his resignation from the NFLPA, Howell said: 'It's clear that my leadership has become a distraction to the important work the NFLPA advances every day.' JC Tretter, former NFLPA chief strategy officer and a frontrunner to take over as interim executive director, resigned from the organization on Sunday. In an interview published by CBS, Tretter said he did not want to be considered for the interim job, nor be a part of the NFLPA. A source briefed on the procedure said the NFLPA executive board still plans to meet in the coming days to determine a process for selecting an interim executive director.
Forbes
3 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Strip Club Expenses Could Be Just The Start In NFLPA Investigation
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - FEBRUARY 05: NFLPA Executive Director Lloyd Howell discusses the state of ... More the union and its direction for the upcoming year before fielding questions from the media on February 05, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by) Lloyd Howell Jr. resigned as the Executive Director of the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) amidst allegations of conflicts of interest and expense impropriety. It's a startling turn for an organization known for stability; Howell was just its third executive director in the last 42 years. Howell may have left the NFLPA, but reading the reports and having investigated hundreds of similar matters, my immediate reaction was that any probe should not just continue, but also expand in scope. This article will focus on why, and what that investigation might look like. NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - FEBRUARY 05: NFLPA Executive Director Lloyd Howell discusses the state of ... More the union and its direction for the upcoming year before fielding questions from the media on February 05, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by) Executives Have A Fiduciary And Moral Responsibility Athletes take fiscal management of their unions seriously, as they should. External to unions, athletes targeted for fraud prorates to a billion-dollar issue based on this Ernst & Young study (which, full disclosure, I co-authored when I was at the firm). Union executives - who have a legal and fiduciary responsibility to their members - should be held to the highest standards in managing what is ultimately athlete money. To that end, unions have internal processes and controls, sometimes based on these Department of Labor recommendations. One such process, submitting expense reports – familiar to many cube monkeys – is part of this issue; expenses from a 2023 and 2025 visis that Howell and colleagues made to strip clubs were submitted for reimbursement to the NFLPA. (Original Caption) 10/15/1987-Washington, DC- Gene Upshaw (R), head of the National Football League ... More players union, announces the end of the strike at a press conference. Alongside Upshaw is Dick Berthelsen, the union's general counsel. Upshaw also said that the union has filed a federal suit in Minneapolis, alleging breach of antitrust laws by the NFL. But Strip Club Shouldn't Be The Only Area Of Concern Consider not just the 'where', but also the 'what' and the 'how'. The line items on the 2025 expense report included 'numerous' cash withdrawals Howell made during the visit. Cash – and its cousins, PayPal, Venmo and gift cards – are high-risk areas for expense reimbursements because they mask the ultimate nature of spend. In addition, Howell reportedly 'instructed (another employee present) to file the expense reports '. That move might have masked total spending for the evening, and also allowed Howell to essentially approve his own expenses if the employee was his subordinate. Expense policies typically prohibit such activities, and both might indicate a willingness to circumvent internal controls that have broader implications. WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 25: A microphone sits outside the building where members of the NFL Players ... More Association are meeting on July 25, 2011 in Washington, DC. (Photo by) Comes Amidst Other Concerning Stories Exacerbating the concern is another report that Howell was operating as a consultant for Carlyle Group, one of the private equity firms approved to make minority investments in NFL teams. That issue is more optical than logical; reportedly, Howell consulted in Aerospace & Defense and the relationship was disclosed and vetted by internal and external teams before he joined the NFLPA and again when Carlyle was approved for NFL investment. But there are also concerns around suppressing potential collusion allegations, a sexual discrimination and retaliation lawsuit at a previous employer, and an ongoing FBI investigation into personal enrichment through the NFLPA's OneTeam investment. Perhaps relatedly, a source close to the partner WilmerHale hired to investigate Howell said 'our work continues'. WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 28: The office building that houses WilmerHale law firm is seen on May 28, 2025 ... More in Washington, DC. (Photo by) How that investigation might proceed Investigations are part art, part science, and no two are the same. But based on experience and the facts that have been publicly disclosed, it's reasonable to suggest counsel and the forensic accountants they hire will pursue a few angles. First will be interviews, including Howell, if he's cooperative, as well as any employees directly or indirectly involved. That also means whistleblowers, especially since the strip club expenses were 'received' by the outside investigator. Second, the NFLPA's attorneys might extract emails for Howell or other employees. Those emails will go into a legal data platform like Relativity that is more effective than the Microsoft Outlook search bar for identifying patterns. Third, they'll pore through two years of expense reimbursement and vendor spending data. Analytics will help, such as math and pattern analyses to identify red flags, or even - ironically - yellow flags. Those results are married to emails and interviews, and sometimes further testing – such as looking at supporting documentation – is necessary for painting a clearer picture. Given the concerns around conflicts of interest and circumvention of internal controls, investigators will also look closely at vendors that the NFLPA paid during Howell's tenure. Did they provide legitimate services? And who else within the organization was aware of conflicts and did enough to communicate them – where reasonable – to broader membership? At the end of this process, WilmerHale will provide a report. If I'm a player, and not just an executive committee member, I'd demand to see it, understanding some parts may be redacted to protect whistleblowers. Transparency is paramount; not just with the union, but with the government, since there are reportedly labor law implications. Necessary for restoring faith As this process unfolds, scrutiny and pressure continue to widen beyond Howell. J.C. Tretter, the President, was reportedly one of two people being considered to replace Howell. He just resigned amidst public criticism on his role in Howell's hiring and other matters from constituents like Will Compton. It's been a tough period for the NFLPA, but with CBA expiration on the horizon, hopefully this investigation and the new executive director will be key first steps in restoring faith from membership.
