President Trump’s decision to appoint his son-in-law as a senior adviser did not violate a federal anti-nepotism law, the Justice Department found in a formal legal opinion issued Saturday. [Read the Justice Department opinion on Jared Kushner’s appointment]Although issued by his own Justice Department, the opinion provides Trump official support for his appointment of Jared Kushner, who is married to his daughter Ivanka, to a top White House role. Gorelick had served as a senior Justice Department official under President Bill Clinton. The Justice Department in 2003, for example, asserted that laws prohibiting assault and other crimes did not apply to military operators questioning al-Qaeda captives, because the president’s authority overrode other statutes. Koffsky is a career Justice Department lawyer who was honored in 2015 with the department’s Mary C. Lawton Lifetime Service Award, reserved for employees with at least 20 years of service.

Source: Washington Post January 21, 2017 17:26 UTC