Politics

Mnuchin Flew to L.A. on Billionaire Michael Milken’s Private Jet

PALS IN HIGH PLACES

The Treasury Department reportedly determined that Mnuchin did not need an ethics waiver for the trip.

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Leah Millis/Reuters

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin flew from Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles this month on the private aircraft of billionaire Michael R. Milken. The Treasury Department confirmed the trip on Friday. Milken is known as the billionaire “junk bond” king, and served two years in prison after pleading guilty to securities fraud in 1990. Mnuchin, who was accompanied by Secret Service agents on the flight, often travels to California to visit his children. According to a Treasury Department spokesman, it was determined that Mnuchin did not need an ethics waiver for the trip because the secretary and Milken have known each other for years, and Mnuchin has reportedly reimbursed Milken for the cost of the flight. This flight is the latest example of Trump administration officials using luxury or government aircraft for personal reasons, the Times reports.

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