Billionaire investor Carl Icahn declines to join Donald Trump's economic advisory council

Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for New York Times

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn turned down an invitation to join Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's economic advisory council because Icahn is considering funding and managing his own super PAC focused on regulatory reform, Icahn's general counsel told Reuters on Friday.

"Mr. Icahn declined the opportunity to join the Trump economic advisory council because at this time, we're still considering whether to fund and manage our own super PAC focused on regulatory reform," Jesse Lynn, general counsel to Icahn, told Reuters. "[Federal Election Commission] rules would limit that activity if Mr. Icahn were to become directly involved in the campaign by joining the council."

Trump announced his economic advisory team on Friday, and said he would release his plan to boost the US economy in a speech on Monday.

Trump has floated Icahn's name for US Treasury secretary if he were elected president. Icahn, 80, has repeatedly rejected the notion of accepting such an offer. Last year, Icahn said: "I am flattered but do not get up early enough in the morning to accept this opportunity."

Last October, Icahn said he was forming a super PAC with an initial commitment of $150 million, representing the biggest one-time injection of money in the history of such political action committees.

Icahn said he was targeting "inversions," which occur when a company moves its headquarters, often outside the US, to take advantage of lower tax rates elsewhere.

Icahn said at the time that the incentive for companies to leave the US via inversion deals could be eliminated by legislation allowing big companies to repatriate funds held offshore at a discounted tax rate — an approach also favored by Trump.

Technically known as independent expenditure-only committees, super PACs may raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions, associations, and people, then spend unlimited sums to advocate for or against political candidates.

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