Maryland, DC Sue Trump Over Constitution’s Foreign, Domestic Emoluments Clauses

By Liberty McArtor Published on June 12, 2017

Maryland and the District of Columbia are suing President Donald Trump. The Washington Post broke news of the lawsuit on Monday. 

Attorneys general Brian Frosh (D.C.) and Karl Racine (Maryland) claim Trump is violating the Constitution’s “Emoluments Clause.” It states:

No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.

Frosh and Racine claim Trump violates that clause by retaining ownership of his global businesses. Trump no longer handles his private businesses directly. He handed their management over to his adult sons. But he still receives financial updates. 

Multiple foreign countries have booked rooms at the Trump hotel in D.C. The lawsuit says foreign payments to the Trump Organization illegally benefit Trump. Such arrangements also hurt local venues that would otherwise host foreign events, Frosh and Racine claim.

In the “Domestic Emoluments Clause,” the Constitution prohibits the president from receiving any gifts from states.

Frosh and Racine fear states feel pressured to adjust laws in order to help Trump’s personal businesses. They also take issue with the Trump Organization’s recent announcement of a new hotel line to be built around the country.

If the lawsuit goes forward, Trump will have to release his personal tax returns. But they likely won’t be made public. 

The nonprofit Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is serving as outside counsel for Frosh and Racine. CREW filed a similar lawsuit against Trump in January. The lawsuit was joined by former George W. Bush ethics adviser Richard Painter, among other legal scholars.

The Department of Justice argued Friday that CREW’s lawsuit should be dropped. The DOJ claimed CREW had no standing to sue.

 

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