Trump wins again as court tosses Democrats' suit over his businesses

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before boarding Marine One at the White House in Washington for the short flight to Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, and then on to Charlotte, North Carolina. Picture: J. Scott Applewhite/AP

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before boarding Marine One at the White House in Washington for the short flight to Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, and then on to Charlotte, North Carolina. Picture: J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Published Feb 7, 2020

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Washington - A federal appeals court on

Friday threw out a lawsuit brought by Democratic lawmakers that

accused Donald Trump of violating anti-corruption provisions in

the US Constitution with his business dealings, capping a week

of political victories for the Republican president.

A unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals

for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the more than

210 House of Representatives and Senate Democrats lacked the

required legal standing to bring the case, reversing a lower

court judge's decision that had allowed the case to proceed.

Two days after being acquitted by the Senate in his

impeachment trial, Trump hailed the ruling as a "total win,"

telling reporters that "it was another phony case." Elizabeth

Wydra, a lawyer for the lawmakers, said they were disappointed

in the decision and were weighing their next steps.

Trump still faces two similar lawsuits pending in other

courts that also accuse him of violating the Constitution's

rarely tested "emoluments" clauses that bar presidents from

taking gifts or payments from foreign and state governments.

The lawsuits all have focused on his ownership of the Trump

International Hotel in Washington, just blocks from the White

House. The hotel, opened by Trump shortly before he was elected

in 2016, has become a favored lodging and event space for some

foreign and state officials visiting Washington.

The ruling came during a week of positives for Trump as he

seeks re-election on Nov. 3. He previewed election themes in his

State of the Union address on Tuesday, benefited from the

chaotic aftermath of Monday's Democratic presidential nomination

contest in Iowa, and was given a lift by Friday's strong jobs

report.

Reuters/Ipsos polling shows that Trump's approval rating has

been largely unchanged by impeachment, with 42 percent of

Americans approving of his performance as president.

Unlike past presidents, Trump - a wealthy real estate

developer-turned politician, has retained ownership of his

business interests while serving in the White House. The

emoluments lawsuits have accused him of making himself

vulnerable to bribery by foreign governments.

In the case dismissed on Friday, the appeals court decided

that it was bound by Supreme Court rulings that have limited the

ability of individual members of Congress to litigate questions

that affect the legislative branch as a whole.

The Democratic lawmakers "can, and likely will, continue to

use their weighty voices to make their case to the American

people, their colleagues in the Congress and the President

himself," the three-judge panel wrote. "But we will not - indeed

we cannot - participate in this debate."

One of the two other emoluments lawsuits against Trump,

brought by the Democratic attorneys general for the District of

Columbia and Maryland, is awaiting a ruling by the Richmond,

Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last

year revived the other emoluments lawsuit, which was brought by

a public interest advocacy group, Citizens for Responsibility

and Ethics in Washington.

At least one of those cases could end up being decided by

the U.S. Supreme Court, according to legal experts. 

Reuters

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