Donald Trump may be convinced that his money, his fame, and now his election to the Oval Office that he’s immune from being held accountable for his actions, but a federal judge in Maryland today proved him wrong.
BREAKING: Federal judge denies @realDonaldTrump's attempt to stop discovery process in "Emoluments Clause" lawsuit by DC/MD A.G.'s. Will allow AGs to get documents showing foreign-government customers at Trump Hotel D.C.
Story coming soon…— David Fahrenthold (@Fahrenthold) November 2, 2018
According to The Washington Post:
‘U.S. District Judge Peter J. Messitte in Greenbelt, Md., denied the Justice Department’s request that he pause the case to allow a higher court to intervene. And Messitte sharply questioned the president’s position that his business does not improperly accept gifts or payments — called emoluments — as defined by the Constitution.
‘By Trump’s analysis, Messitte wrote, the term emoluments is the subject of such “substantial grounds of disagreement” that payments his business received from foreign governments could not qualify. The judge did not agree: “The Court finds this a dubious proposition.”’
NEW: Federal judge denies Trump's request to immediately appeal some rulings in the DC and MD Emoluments case. Judge also denies Trump's request to stop discovery. A discovery plan is now due in 20 days. Opinion: https://t.co/tvNaR8ye2o pic.twitter.com/555IdcUgIr
— Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner) November 2, 2018
Since the first day of Trump’s presidency, the emoluments clause has been an issue. Trump posed during his first presidential press conference next to ridiculously tall stacks of paper he said were the documents signing his international business ties over to his sons, Don, Jr. and Eric, but no one was allowed to actually view these documents.
"A federal judge on Friday denied Trump’s request to stay a lawsuit alleging he is in violation of the Constitution by doing business with foreign governments…pav[ing] the way for plaintiffs to seek info from his business as it relates to his D.C. hotel" https://t.co/z0GKas0ACM
— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) November 2, 2018
Nor has anyone been allowed to view Trump’s tax returns, which would solve the issue without a court case. Trump, however, has nixed that idea, becoming the first presidential candidate in modern history to refuse to release them during the campaigns. Releasing those returns would have proven that Trump was in no way compromised through financial ties to foreign governments.
Federal judge allows discovery to move forward in Trump emoluments case https://t.co/BOZ0FkNanW pic.twitter.com/BKooiIsTf4
— CNN (@CNN) November 2, 2018
That didn’t happen, so now Trump is stuck with a lawsuit. Apparently, he’s not getting out of it, either.
Featured image via Flickr by Matt Johnson under a Creative Commons license
