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Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) on Friday heightened his allegations against former U.S. President Donald Trump, accusing him of accepting payments from foreign officials during his presidency.
What Happened: This comes in light of claims that officials from China and Saudi Arabia reportedly made lavish expenditures at Trump’s properties when he was in office, Raw Story reported.
Raskin, while addressing the media outside the U.S. Capitol, underscored the significance of the emoluments clause in the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits presidents from accepting foreign payments during their tenure.
“It’s very clear in the Constitution of the United States that the president may not accept a present, an emolument, an office, or a title of any kind whatever from a prince, a king, or a foreign government without the consent of Congress,” he said.
“And yet, we showed yesterday, we’ve got the documented receipts that Donald Trump pocketed $7.8 million from foreign governments, from China, from Saudi Arabia, from the United Arab Emirates, without ever coming to Congress first.”
See Also: US Supreme Court To Decide On Trump’s Eligibility For Colorado Ballot Over Capitol Attack
These allegations surface amidst ongoing attempts by congressional Republicans to validate that President Joe Biden inappropriately benefitted from his son’s foreign business dealings. Their investigations have so far only revealed that Hunter Biden utilized his foreign earnings to pay back his father for a car loan.
Raskin emphasized that the Constitution permits presidents to receive only their salary and expressed concerns about presidents obtaining payments from “Chinese communist bureaucrats or murderous Saudi monarchs.”
Why It Matters: The allegations against Trump are not new. A report by the House Oversight Committee Democrats released on Thursday provided evidence of Trump receiving up to $7.8 million from foreign governments during his presidency. This revelation has sparked concerns about potential conflicts of interest and violations of the emoluments clause of the Constitution.
Meanwhile, the allegations also come at a time when Trump’s potential candidacy for the 2024 presidential election is under scrutiny. The U.S. Supreme Court is set to review the potential disqualification of Trump from the Colorado ballot due to his alleged involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.
The former president is the leading contender in the Republican primary race. In the latest weekly Morning Consult poll, in a hypothetical matchup of Trump versus Joe Biden, Trump received 42% of the vote and Biden received 41% of the vote.
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Photo by Phil Pasquini on Shutterstock
