EMOLUMENTS CLAUSE – Tom's Blog

A U.S. federal appeals court ruled Friday that a lawsuit accusing President Donald Trump of violating the U.S. Constitution’s emoluments clause can move forward.

The lawsuit, filed by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), was dismissed for lack of standing by a lower-level judge in December 2017. The plaintiffs, comprised of the president’s rivals in the hospitality industry, have alleged that the president’s profiting off his “foreign and domestic government clientele” have hurt their businesses.

“The Plaintiff establishments cater to foreign and domestic government clientele, and allege that they are direct competitors of hospitality properties owned by the President in Washington D.C. and New York City. The complaint alleges that President Trump, operating through corporations, limited‐liability companies, limited partnerships, and other business structures, is effectively the sole owner of restaurants, hotels, and event spaces, which are patronized by foreign and domestic government clientele,” reads the appellate court’s explanation of the case.

“The President has announced that, since assuming office, he has turned over day‐to‐day management of his business empire to his children and established a trust to hold his business assets. However, he maintains sole ownership, receives business updates at least quarterly, and has the ability to obtain distributions from the trust at any time,” it added.

Noah Bookbinder, CREW’s executive director, lauded the development and called on the president to “end his violations” of the Constitution’s emoluments clauses.

“We thank and applaud the judges of the Second Circuit for their decision today. We never wanted to be in a position where it would be necessary to go to court to compel the President of the United States to follow the Constitution,” Bookbinder told Law&Crime. “However, President Trump left us no choice, and we will proudly fight as long as needed to ensure Americans are represented by an ethical government under the rule of law.”

“If President Trump would like to avoid the case going further and curtail the serious harms caused by his unconstitutional conduct, now would be a good time to divest from his businesses and end his violations of the Emoluments Clauses of the Constitution,” he added.

SEAN MORAN

6 Sep 2019

Breitbart News has exclusively obtained letters House Oversight Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-MD) sent to Donald Trump administration officials, as well as Trump Organization officials, regarding Vice President Mike Pence’s stay at a Trump hotel in Ireland.

Democrats quickly attacked Vice President Pence regarding his stay at Trump International Golf Links In Doonbeg, Ireland. Pence chief of staff Marc Short insisted that the VP’s office followed protocol and received State Department signoff on the trip. Short also said that Pence is personally covering the costs for his mother and his sister to stay at the Trump hotel. Pence’s office has insisted that President Trump did not “direct” the vice president to stay the Trump hotel in Ireland.

Breitbart News exclusively obtained letters that Chairman Cummings sent to White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, U.S. Secret Service Director James Murray, Vice President chief of staff Short, and Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselbergregarding Pence’s stay at the Trump hotel in Ireland.

Elijah Cummings Letter to Marc Short by Breitbart News on Scribd

Chairman Cummings said in the letters to the officials that the Democrat-led Oversight Committee “does not believe that U.S. taxpayer funds should be used to personally enrich President Trump, his family, and his companies.”

From these documents obtained by Breitbart News, Cummings wishes to know how much the trip cost the “American taxpayer–or benefited the Trump organization.” The Maryland congressman suggested that this trip might amount to a “conflict of interest” and “waste of taxpayer funds,” or even a violation of the Domestic Emoluments Clause of the Constitution.

Cummings cited that the Emoluments Clause stipulates that the president can receive a salary during his tenure in office but that “he shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them.”

Cummings demanded that the White House hand over documents with “itemized costs” for Pence’s trip, as well as the costs for President Trump’s June 2019 trip to Trump Doonbeg.

Chairman Cummings’ inquiry into Pence’s trip to Ireland has incensed those close to the White House.

One source close to the White House told Breitbart News, “First they attack the President. If they can’t get the President, they attack the people closest to him. This is nothing more than political harassment to people closest to the President. Will House Democrats ever pass meaningful legislation, or will these witch hunts just never end?”