Donald Trump leveraged the then-Trump International Hotel in Washington to unconstitutionally add to his $400,000 a year salary during his term as president, according to a group of House Democrats.
In a report out Friday, Democrats on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee said Trump had likely violated the U.S. Constitution’s ban on emoluments, compensation outside of the president’s ordinary pay and benefits. He did so, they said, by charging inflated room rates at his hotel only blocks from the White House to Secret Service agents, administration officials and office seekers.
“The Constitution makes clear: beyond a salary, the president may not receive any additional payments from federal or state governments. This is a non-waivable prohibition against exploiting the office to convert and pocket public funds,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the top Democrat on the committee.
“While we still do not know the full extent of the unconstitutional payments Trump…