Donald Trump plays a round of golf during his weekend trip to his Turnberry resort. Credit: Leon Neal, Getty
Ethics watchdogs say early-morning missive advances president’s personal financial interests.
President Trump sent out a predawn tweet Saturday boasting about Trump International Golf Links, constructed near Aberdeen, Scotland, among the high, wind-raked dunes along the North Sea.
“Very proud of perhaps the greatest golf course anywhere in the world. Also, furthers U.K. relationship!” Trump tweeted.
The comment sparked immediate consternation from critics of the president, who suggested he was using his powerful office to advance his financial interests. The U.S. Constitution has two clauses designed to prevent a national leader from using power in such a manner.
John Legere, chief executive of T-Mobile, arrives at a Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on the impact of the T-Mobile and Sprint merger on June 27. Credit: Andrew Harrer, Bloomberg News
Last April, telecom giant T-Mobile announced a megadeal: a $26 billion merger with rival Sprint, which would more than double T-Mobile’s value and give it a huge new chunk of the cellphone market.
But for T-Mobile, one hurdle remained: Its deal needed approval from the Trump administration.
The next day, in Washington, staffers at the Trump International Hotel were handed a list of incoming “VIP Arrivals.” That day’s list included nine of T-Mobile’s top executives — including its chief operating officer, chief technology officer, chief strategy officer and chief financial officer, and its outspoken celebrity chief executive, John Legere.
The following article by David A. Fahrenthold and Jonathan O’Connell was posted on the Washington Post website December 21, 2017:
A lawsuit dismissed Thursday challenged President Trump’s decision to hold onto his properties, including his Washington hotel. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post)
A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit Thursday alleging that President Trump violated the Constitution’s emoluments clause because his hotels and restaurants do business with foreign governments while he is in office.
The plaintiffs argued that because Trump properties rent out hotel rooms and meeting spaces to other governments, the president was violating a constitutional provision that bans the acceptance of foreign emoluments, or gifts from foreign powers. Continue reading “Judge dismisses lawsuit alleging Trump violated Constitution”
The following is an article by Derek Kravitz and Al Shaw was posted on the ProPublica website January 20, 2017:
To transfer control of his companies, the president has to submit filings in Florida, Delaware and New York. We spoke to officials in each of those states.
The President-elect Trump gestures to stacks of manila envelopes he said contain documents that transferred “complete control” of his businesses while speaking during a news conference in the lobby of Trump Tower in New York on Jan. 11, 2017 (Evan Vucci/AP Photo)
Update, Jan. 23, 2017:The Trump Organization is now filing paperwork on President Trump’s resignation from his companies. As of 5:30 p.m., it has filed paperwork for at least 14 companies in Florida.
The documents, which we’ve posted, are dated Monday, Jan. 23.
During today’s press briefing, White House Strategic Communication Director Hope Hicks said that Trump has resigned from all his companies, but that the documents “are not public at this time.”
