NEW YORK—A lawsuit Monday alleged that President Donald Trump is violating the Constitution by allowing his business to accept payments from foreign governments.
Trump is violating the so-called emoluments clause in the Constitution that prohibits him from receiving money from diplomats for stays at his hotels or foreign governments for leases of office space in his buildings, according to the suit filed by a legal watchdog group. The language in the clause is disputed by some legal scholars, setting the stage for a court fight with the White House.
The liberal-funded watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed the lawsuit in the Southern District of New York.
CREW is being represented in the lawsuit by two former White House chief ethics lawyers: Norman Eisen, who advised Barack Obama, and Richard Painter, who worked under George W. Bush. The two have expressed frustration that Trump has refused to take their recommendation and divest from his business, and feel they had no choice but to take legal action.
“These violations of the Foreign Emoluments Clause pose a grave threat to the United States and its citizens,” according to the lawsuit. “As the Framers were aware, private financial interests can subtly sway even the most virtuous leaders, and entanglements between American officials and foreign powers could pose a creeping, insidious threat to the Republic.”
