LEGAL/TRUMP PEOPLE: “Corey Lewandowski, a close political adviser to President Donald Trump who is facing scrutiny over his business interests, denied after a speech in Cleveland on Thursday [8-3-17] that he is actively working with an Ohio-based payday lending company.
But the denial only came when Lewandowski was pressed by reporters — not by audience members who demanded answers during the City Club of Cleveland’s time-honored Q&A session.
The New York Times reported this week that Lewandowski’s new consulting firm was pursuing a contract with Community Choice Financial. The link raised eyebrows, because days earlier Lewandowski had used an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press to urge Trump to fire Richard Cordray, the former Ohio attorney general who — as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — has a role in regulating the payday lending industry.
The call to dump Cordray came out of nowhere — in response to a question about the ousting of White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus — and prompted host Chuck Todd to ask whether Lewandowski had a client or business interest affected by federal financial regulations.
Lewandowski, who was Trump’s first campaign manager, said then that he did not. On Thursday, he danced around pointed questions from two City Club attendees.”
-Henry J. Gomez, “Corey Lewandowski Denies Payday Lending Ties After Ohio Speech,” Buzzfeed News, Aug. 3, 2017 01:03pm