Nov 7, 2019

Trump agrees to pay $2 million for violating charities law

Rashaan Ayesh, Orion Rummler

Photo: Matt Sullivan/Getty Images

A judge has ordered President Trump and his children to pay $2 million to a group of nonprofit organizations as part of a settlement with the New York state attorney general's office involving "persistent" violations of charities law, reports CNN.

Why it matters: The lawsuit alleges that the Trumps violated state and federal campaign finance laws in 2016 by using the Donald J. Trump Foundation's tax-exempt status "as little more than a checkbook to serve Mr. Trump's business and political interests." The Trump Foundation agreed to dissolve last December in compliance with the lawsuit.

What he's saying: "Every penny of the $19 million raised by the Trump Foundation went to hundreds of great charitable causes with almost no expenses," Trump responded Thursday in a statement.

  • Trump accused New York Attorney General Letitia James, former New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, and New York Solicitor General Barbara Underwood of targeting him with "4 years of politically motivated harassment."

The bottom line: Trump said on Thursday he would be "happy to donate $2 million" — the amount ordered by Justice Saliann Scarpulla — to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Children's Aid Society, City Meals on Wheels, United Negro College Fund, United Way of Capital Area, Army Emergency Relief, Martha's Table, and Give an Hour.

Go deeper: The fall of the Trump Foundation

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Rashaan Ayesh

Judge dismisses Trump's lawsuit over tax returns

Photo: Steven Ferdman/WireImage/Getty Images

A federal judge in D.C. has thrown out President Trump's lawsuit that aims to block the House Ways and Means Committee from getting access to his tax returns through a new New York state law, reports NBC News.

Why it matters: Trump has tried to block every attempt to make his tax returns public and plans to take this case to the Supreme Court.

Go deeperArrowNov 11, 2019
Orion Rummler

Trump intends to take tax return fight to Supreme Court

President Trump at a Georgia rally on Nov. 8, in Atlanta, Georgia. Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

President Trump's lawyers intend to petition the U.S. Supreme Court by Nov. 14 to review a lower court ruling requiring the president to turn over eight years of his tax returns to a state grand jury, according to a letter written Friday.

Why it matters: This case would mark the first time the Supreme Court makes a decision on Trump's legal argument — that he is immune from criminal investigation while in office — and could "produce a major statement on the limits of presidential power," the New York Times reports.

Go deeperArrowNov 9, 2019
Axios

Trump asks Supreme Court to block subpoena for tax returns

Photo: Steven Ferdman/WireImage

President Trump on Thursday filed a petition asking the Supreme Court to reverse a lower court ruling compelling his longtime accounting firm Mazars USA to turn over his tax returns to the Manhattan district attorney.

Why it matters: The request, which was expected, marks a significant escalation of the president's fight to stop prosecutors and Congress from obtaining his financial records — one that will test the limits of Trump's argument that he is immune from criminal investigation while in office.

Go deeperArrowNov 14, 2019