Trump's Sanctions Staff Defects as U.S. Expands Economic War

[DonViejo]

By Saleha Mohsin
March 22, 2019, 4:00 AM EDT

Departing staff cite mismanagement, lure of private sector

Treasury has doubled the pace of sanctions in two years

The U.S. office in charge of financial sanctions, President Donald Trump’s favorite weapon against American adversaries, risks being hobbled by staff departures due to management turmoil and growing private-sector demand for its expertise.

Trump has nearly doubled the number of people and companies under U.S. sanctions. But in the last two years, about 20 staff have left the office in charge of implementing and enforcing sanctions, the Office of Foreign Assets Control -- about 10 percent of its workforce.

The sanctions office, part of a Treasury division overseen by Sigal Mandelker, has the power to freeze billions of dollars in assets, blacklist individuals and companies from participating in the U.S. economy and punish violations. The Trump administration has turned to sanctions to pressure countries including North Korea, Venezuela and Turkey.

The increased tempo and sophistication of the work of the sanctions office, known as OFAC, has contributed to attrition. Washington law firms, Wall Street banks and other companies have sought to hire Treasury’s sanctions officials to help them translate the agency’s decisions, which can have sweeping effects on financial markets.

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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-03-22/trump-sanctions-staff-defects-even-as-u-s-expands-economic-war