Dems Propose Ban on Officials Getting Foreign Payments After Trump Probe

(OurNationNews.com) -Democrats in the legislature have put forward a proposed law that would enforce the Emoluments Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which bans government officials from receiving payments, gifts, or any sort of compensation from foreign governments.

The proposed legislation comes on the heels of a lengthy investigation by the Democrats’ House Oversight Committee staff that found that businesses owned by or affiliated with former president Donald Trump received as much as $8 million during the course of his presidency. Democrats claim that foreign officials were driven to stay in Trump’s luxury properties, for example, which they say blatantly violates the Constitution’s Emoluments Clause.

According to Democratic Maryland Representative Jamie Raskin, Trump’s activities during his term necessitated the legislation, which he said would prevent others from “exploiting the presidency for self-enrichment by selling out our government to foreign states.” Raskin, along with Democratic Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal, are the primary proponents of the bill.

The proposal bans senior federal officials— the president and members of the cabinet, the vice president, senators, representatives, and other federal officeholders—from accepting any future payments during their tenure without congressional approvial. The ban would extend to up to two years after their terms end. The definition of payments also extends to include any sort of compensation – money, gifts, and the like – that are directly and indirectly received from members of other countries’ royal families or from companies or firms owned by foreign governments.

Trump famously defied traditional ethics when he became president through refusing to let go of his many businesses, including many real estate and hotel properties. The Democrats’ investigation indicated that foreign officials from countries such as Saudi Arabia, China, and the Democratic Republic of Congo availed themselves of stays in Trump’s eponymous hotels in Washington and Las Vegas as well as two more of the former president’s properties in New York.

For his part, Trump and his legal team say that the president committed no wrongdoing, citing that the Emoluments Clause does not cover legitimate and fair-value transactions between businesses and customers.