Donald Trump's Nordstrom attack called 'reprehensible' by George W Bush's most senior ethics lawyer

US President 'attacked a company for its decision in the free market that it didn't think the clothes were selling well,' says Richard Painter

US President Donald Trump in the White House on 10 February 2017 (AFP)

Donald Trump’s attack on a department store chain which dropped his daughter Ivanka’s clothing line has been called “reprehensible” by former President George W Bush’s most senior ethics lawyer.

Richard Painter said the US leader was using his position to “intimidate Nordstrom”, after Mr Trump said his daughter had been “treated so unfairly” by the firm on Twitter.

His actions unleashed a wave of disapproval as critics widely accused Mr Trump of misusing public office to benefit his family’s own business.

Calling the outburst “egregious”, Mr Painter, who is now law professor at the University of Minnesota, told Business Insider that Mr Trump “attacked a company for its decision in the free market that it didn't think the clothes were selling well".

He added that instead of "reining him in," White House staff were "jumping into the fray" to help defend him.

"The Republicans on the hill — and I'm a Republican and I've been very unhappy about this — they are not willing to confront the President and say that he has got to make some fundamental changes in his approach if he wants to keep this job," Mr Painter said.

He added: "We haven't elected a king or a führer or whatever. He's a president. There's a Constitution. And the problem is the members of Congress are not willing to, at least the Republicans are not yet willing, to face the fact that there needs to be a fundamental attitude adjustment on the part of the President if he wants to keep this job.”

Mr Trump’s adviser Kellyanne Conway, who was later censured for telling people to “go buy Ivanka’s stuff” in the White House press briefing room, “simply followed what he was doing,” Mr Painter said.

He added: "She didn't go anywhere near as far as he did. She didn't attack anybody. She didn't seek to intimidate anybody for the decisions they make in the free market. Which he did. What he did was particularly reprehensible."

Ms Conway drew sharp criticism from a top Republican lawmaker and complaints over the ethics of using her position to promote Ms Trump’s product lines.

Federal ethics rules prohibit executive branch employees from using their positions to endorse products or for the private gain of friends. The law does not apply to the president.

Republican Jason Chaffetz, chairman of the House of Representatives Oversight committee, told The Associated Press Ms Conway's promotion of the brand was “clearly over the line, unacceptable".

The non-profit Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and Public Citizen filed complaints with the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) and the White House Counsel's Office.

“It's a violation of the rule,” Norman Eisen, who served as an ethics adviser to Democratic President Barack Obama, told MSNBC. “It's a serious matter.”