The White House on Wednesday acknowledged it did not secure an ethics pledge from ousted national security adviser Michael Flynn, who served for two weeks after Trump signed an executive order mandating that officials agree to a five-year lobbying ban and lifetime prohibition on foreign lobbying. "At least so far, the ethical standards that are being applied to high-level officials coming in are quite incoherent and seemingly haphazard," said Meredith McGehee, a chief at the government reform group Issue One who has worked on federal ethics laws and policies for decades. Adding another layer of complexity is Trump's frequent vow to take a tougher stance on China's trade and currency practices, which could affect Chinese companies' ability to sell their goods and services in the U.S. Cohn is in the process of selling his stock in the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China as he works with the Office of Government Ethics to clear out potential conflicts of interest, according to a White House official who requested anonymity to discuss the personnel matter. Kushner Companies, now led by his relatives, has been negotiating with the Chinese Anbang Insurance Group to provide what could be hundreds of millions of dollars in equity for redevelopment of a Manhattan office building. A senior White House official who requested anonymity to discuss a personnel matter said Kushner would recuse himself from any government business to which Anbang Insurance Group is a party.