Judge rejects bias claim, won’t toss Trump charity lawsuit

NEW YORK — President Donald Trump’s claim that a lawsuit against his charitable foundation was motivated by political bias of the state attorney general’s office was rejected by a judge.

New York State Supreme Court Justice Saliann Scarpulla on Friday denied a request from Trump and his foundation to dismiss the suit in which the president and his three eldest children are accused of engaging in a decadelong pattern of self-dealing and using the nonprofit’s funds for political purposes.

The lawsuit is one of the most serious legal challenges facing Trump and his family. Unless an appeals court blocks the attorney general, the process of uncovering evidence will allow the state’s lawyers to reach into the Trump family’s financial dealings.