Trump, the G-7, and the Emoluments Clause

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FRED WERTHEIMER’S WEEKLY NOTE | AUGUST 28, 2019freadshot

“This effort by Trump to financially profit from the 2020 G-7 has just provided the clearest and strongest example of why the lawsuits challenging his violations of the Emoluments Clause should succeed quickly in the courts.”

President Trump’s apparent coming violation of the Emoluments Clause of our Constitution is likely to be his most blatant abuse of the Clause yet.

He has announced that he plans to hold the 2020 meeting of the G-7 at his Trump National Doral Hotel in Miami.

This effort by Trump to financially profit from the 2020 G-7 has just provided the clearest and strongest example of why the lawsuits challenging his violations of the Emoluments Clause should succeed quickly in the courts. (Trump refused to give up ownership of his business enterprises after he was elected.)

Trump is using the G-7 to hawk his floundering hotel like a carnival barker.

The Emoluments Clause prohibits the President from receiving financial benefits from foreign interests, and that is exactly what he, through his ownership of the Doral, would receive from the other G-7 members – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom.

To add violation to violation, not to mention adding another affront to our democracy, Trump has said he plans to invite Vladimir Putin to the meeting.

If Putin comes, Russia will also be providing illegal financial benefits to Trump as the President’s special guest, at the same time that Russia is expected to be heavily involved in interfering with the 2020 presidential election, just as it did in 2016 to help Trump.

President Trump himself has done nothing to prevent Russia from interfering in our elections. He has been joined in this effort by “Moscow Mitch” McConnell who has been using his powers as Senate Majority Leader to block all legislative efforts to strengthen election security in the states.

In June, the House passed the Securing America’s Federal Elections (SAFE) Act to improve election security in the states. In September, the House is expected to consider and pass another bill, the SHIELD Act, to prevent foreign interference in our elections. The House has also passed an appropriations bill to provide $600 million to the states to strengthen their protection of voting capabilities, vote counts, and voter registration rolls.

All eyes should be on McConnell to see if he continues to stonewall these legislative efforts to protect our democracy and the integrity of our elections.

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Fred Wertheimer is the Founder and President of Democracy 21, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to strengthen our democracy and ensure the integrity and fairness of government decisions and elections. See previous Notes from Fred here.