The Supreme Court on Monday threw out two lawsuits accusing Donald Trump of violating the emoluments clause and profiting off of his presidency by maintaining ownership of his business empire while president.
The highest U.S. court formally dismissed the lawsuits just five days after Trump left office, deeming them moot since the business mogul and television personality is no longer seated in the Oval Office.
The nine Supreme Court justices threw out lower court orders on Monday, which had allowed the lawsuits to proceed after declining to hear Trump's appeals to these decisions.
Three of the justices on the Supreme Court were selected by Trump - Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.
The plaintiffs accused Trump of running afoul of the Constitution's 'emoluments' provisions that bar presidents from accepting gifts or payments from foreign and state governments without congressional approval.
The plaintiffs had asked the Supreme Court to reject Trump's appeals because the dispute would disappear once Trump left office last Wednesday.
Those suing said that as president, Trump benefited from a stream of foreign and state government officials who patronized his properties - including the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C.The two now defunct cases are Trump v. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and Trump v. District of Columbia.
Wednesday, January 27, 2021
Supreme Court dismisses bids to sue Trump over emoluments clause, saying case is now moot
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment