Trump sued over business links
Maryland and D.C. allege violation of U.S. Constitution
WASHINGTON — The attorneys general of Maryland and the District of Columbia filed a federal lawsuit Monday against U.S. President Donald Trump, alleging he violated the American Constitution by retaining ties to his sprawling global business empire and by accepting foreign payments while in office.
Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh joined District counterpart Karl Racine at a news conference in announcing the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in neighbouring Maryland.
Much of the case is focused on allegations that Trump’s realestate and business holdings violate an emoluments clause of the Constitution. The provision bars the president and other government employees from accepting foreign gifts and payments without congressional approval.
“The president’s conflicts of interest threaten our democracy,” Frosh said. “We cannot treat the president’s ongoing violations of the Constitution and his disregard of the rights of the American people as the new acceptable status quo.”
Trump’s unique status as both president and the financial beneficiary of his global business empire raised questions about the emoluments clause of the Constitution even before he took office. Trump and his attorneys argue the clause does not cover fair-value transactions, such as hotel room payments and real-estate sales.
The attorneys general aren’t the first to sue Trump over emoluments. Just days after Trump’s inauguration in January, the government watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington filed a federal lawsuit in the Southern District of New York. Since then, a restaurant group and two individuals in the hotel industry have joined as plaintiffs.
The Justice Department said Friday that those plaintiffs did not suffer in any way and had no standing to sue, and that it is unconstitutional to sue the president in his official capacity.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer noted that response at a White House press briefing Monday.
“This lawsuit today is just another iteration of the case that was filed by that group CREW, filed actually by the same lawyers,” Spicer said. “So it’s not hard to conclude that partisan politics may be one of the motivations behind the suit.”
The Trump Hotel in the U.S. capital affects business in the Washington area and is part of the reason the lawsuit was filed, the two Democratic officials explained. They also said their action was non-partisan, and other state attorneys general, including Republicans, were welcome to join the suit. It seeks an injunction to stop what the two alleged are the president’s constitutional violations.
Frosh said Trump regularly welcomes foreign diplomats to his hotel and appears frequently at Trump establishments, “using his role as president to raise their public profile.”