Trump says his businesses got money from foreign governments because he was 'doing services' for them

CantaloupeLifestyle@lemmy.world to politics @lemmy.world – 447 points –
Trump says his businesses got money from foreign governments because he was 'doing services' for them
businessinsider.com
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Yeah, while he was president. That’s the problem.

And the Supreme Court waited until he was no longer president to call it moot.

When was that?

Thanks! I somehow missed that one. Since the cases were vacated, future emoluments suits can still be filed, right?

Yes, but they'll also be moot. The only saving grace here is that the way SCOTUS mooted these suits by definition can't set precedent, so once the current justices die in office there'll be hope again.

He wiped his ass with the Emoluments Clause.

find a Clause without Trump's shit on it, i challenge you

The Santa Clause?

Wait... Tim Allen! NOOOOOOOOO!!!!

For a former drug dealer, you're pretty uncool...

For a former drug dealer

Who snitched on his buddies, don't forget. He's always been trash. (Which, really, breaks my heart. I loved Home Improvement and The Santa Clause as a kid and I have to admit he's good in Galaxy Quest.)

Sigourney Weaver wrote it best... "Go fuck yourself, Tim"

It turns out the President can do whatever he wants as long as 34 Senators let him

The more we look, the more we find, the more the crazy’s love him. I don’t get it. Will be happy when he is no longer in front of my face at every turn.

If a Democrat does it, it's vile corruption that warrants vigilante justice. If a republican does it, it's being smart.

If a Democrat's son allegedly does it while not actually being in office himself, it means you have to impeach the father.

Which, of course they don’t even believe or say that, because a logical system of ideology is not what they’re playing at. It’s just straight up smash-n-grab while the right wing propaganda flows unimpeded.

Exactly, all this stuff is either irrelevant or a positive to Republicans.

For those wondering why this is a big deal:

US Constitution, Article 1, Section 9, Clause 8:

"no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State."

Emolument:

https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/emolument#Noun

emolument (plural emoluments)

(formal) Payment for employment or an office; compensation for a job, which is usually monetary. synonyms ▲quotations ▼Synonyms: compensation, fee, payment, remuneration

I wonder how this will go down in court. It clearly says "person" and the money was paid to a corporation. Trump's businesses aren't holding any office, therefore the constitution wasn't violated. That's obviously horse shit, but they're arguing that the presidency isn't an office (CO ballot case). So if they win that it seems likely SCOTUS will drop a nuke on the emoluments clause too.

According to Citizens United Supreme Court ruling, Corporations are people. So lets put it to the test. If you can give unlimited campaign contributions to a PAC through a corporations, than a corporation, and it's executives, would equally be liable under the law for violating the constitution.

"It's treason then..."

Meanwhile Left wing voters in 2024: "So this is how liberty dies . . . with thunderous applause"

And entirely too many lefties, "I don't like either candidate so I won't vote."

Or worse (and thankfully a much smaller number), "I'm going to let trump get power again so things can really bad really quick so we can get The Revolution™ started."

Picking the lesser of 2 evils is unfortunately how our system functions. And not voting at all ensures that the candidate you hate the most has an easier time winning. And I'd prefer if the worst candidate doesn't get power so we can actually change things for the better.

“I’m going to let trump get power again so things can really bad really quick so we can get The Revolution™ started.”

"Revolution now?"

"Not at the moment, I have too much shit going on and I don't need to go to prison or anything for some dumb shit. There are people depending on me."

Destroys society

"How about now?"

I’m not buying that yet. I think the whole “oooh gen whatever is turning on biden” is a truckload of bullshit printed up by The Usual Suspects.

Voter participation has been very high even recently.

I will definitely vote for Biden, but his disgusting simping for Israel makes me a lot less inclined to donate money to his campaign. I might end up only donating to anti-Trump PACs instead.

if you're voting for someone and not fighting with them after they win you're only doing half a democracy. people talk about "the lesser of two evils" but there's no realistic situation in which you agree with the person you're voting for on all things, so there is no strategy that doesn't include the "lesser evil". The fact is that Biden sucks shit. The other fact is that Trump is much worse on all things, including whatever you happen to be pissed of at Biden about. So the choice seems to be "do I spite the guy who pissed me off but actually make the situation worse, or do I do what's in my power to make the situation better, vote for the guy who pissed me off as a stopgap and then do everything I can to bully him into actually doing the right thing?"

Also, it is easy to say "I'm not voting for Biden, I want someone else" right now. There aren't any consequences.

But come November and suddenly the consequences become more immediate. Many more people say they will vote third party than actually do it once in the voting booth.

Can I just say that this is my absolute favorite picture of him. It's the exact same expression my kids made when they shit in their diapers.

I knew I recognized that expression.

"Are you pooping?"

"Nnnnnnoooo?"

"You're pooping aren't you?"

"Not anymore!"

Prob because he just shit his diaper. Pretty much confirmed that he’s had Depends for the past 20 years.

A rare true statement from his puckered asshole of a face.

"I don't get $8 million for doing nothing," he said.

Yeah, we know.

It's literally why the emoluments clause exists.

Yeah but per SCOTUS, so?

I haven't recognized the legitimacy of the court since Barrett and Kavanaugh were installed, and neither should you. Of course I understand the reality of them wielding a lot of power, but I used to think that when I disagreed with their rulings it was because they understand the law better than I do. Now I only entertain that notion for unanimous rulings.

Yes, destroying the democracy of the USA.

The only "services" Trump provided during his presidency were under Putin's table.

Hey at least he didn't do it at a Beetlejuice play!

I do enjoy that he just keeps admitting to the things that he is in trouble for.

He's not actually in trouble for this one, is he?

Sorry for the lateness, this falls across a few of his ongoing and upcoming cases. Taking money from a foreign government and taking money for your business are both not legal for a president. Not that it matters if they don't charge him for it or convict him though.

When everyone prays for a three letter word that doesn't start with g

So what is the current count up to now for Trump willfully and blatantly admitting to corruption and/or treason? It's in the double digits now, right?

This is the best summary I could come up with:


Trump was at a Fox News town hall on Wednesday, commenting on a recent report from Democratic lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee.

The report, published on January 4, said Trump's businesses had received at least $7.8 million in foreign payments during his presidency.

Foreign governments and government-controlled entities had made payments to Trump's hotels in Washington, Las Vegas, and New York.

"President Trump never sought or received Congress's approval to keep these foreign payments, as the Constitution requires," the authors wrote.

Trump was indicted in four separate prosecutions last year and faces 91 criminal counts, ranging from falsifying business records to election interference.

Trump remains the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, and recent polls suggest a close fight between him and President Joe Biden.


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