Trump Adviser Larry Kudlow Reveals Assets of $2 Million

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser, Larry Kudlow, revealed assets worth a maximum of $2 million, far less than his predecessor, according to his financial disclosure obtained from the White House.

Kudlow, director of the White House National Economic Council, disclosed income of $820,203 in 2017 and the first months of 2018. His biggest holding was a stake worth between $500,000 and $1 million in State Street Corporation’s SPDR S&P 500 ETF, the document shows. Officials disclose their incomes and value of assets within broad ranges, and they’re not required to reveal personal real estate holdings.

The statement nonetheless portrays personal wealth on a much smaller scale than other key economic players in the administration, such as Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross or Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Kudlow’s predecessor, Gary Cohn, a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. president listed assets of at least $254 million in his initial filing, and had a minimum income of $48.3 million.

Kudlow, appointed by Trump in March, has been an active voice in the White House for a second phase of tax cuts, and he’s urged the president to allow more time to resolve an ongoing trade dispute with China.

According to the disclosure, Kudlow worked for the Committee to Unleash Prosperity, a group launched by former Republican presidential candidate Steve Forbes, economist Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore, the founder of the Club for Growth and a top economic adviser to the Trump campaign. The group pushes for low taxes, deregulation and free trade.

Kudlow also provided consulting services for five investment firms, including Guggenheim Partners LLC and Neuberger Berman, according to the disclosure, which requires government officials to list sources of compensation exceeding $5,000 in a year. He also listed CNBC, where he was a senior contributor before joining the White House, and Westwood One, where he hosted a radio show.

Kudlow’s largest source of income -- $782,000 -- was from his company, Kudlow & Co., LLC, for personal services, including television and radio work, consulting, writing and paid speeches. His company made a total of $620,500 from his speeches and participation in conference calls. More than 30 organizations paid to hear from him, including Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Corp.’s Merrill Lynch and the National Retail Federation.

Most of Kudlow’s holdings were in diversified funds that didn’t have to be sold for government service. He did have to sell at least one holding: 249 shares of a health care fund that he valued between $30,000 and $100,000. Kudlow received a deferral on capital gains taxes to sell the stock, a separate document from the Office of Government Ethics shows.

The financial disclosure, which has yet to be approved by the Office of Government Ethics, was revised five times after it was submitted.

To contact the reporter on this story: Bill Allison in Washington at ballison14@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Sara Forden at sforden@bloomberg.net, Joshua Gallu, Mike Dorning

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