A Republican group will air on Monday a video advertisement accusing President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence of corruption, Newsweek reports.
The video, which is paid for by Republicans for the Rule of Law, will be broadcast on MSNBC, and draw a parallel between Trump and Pence and Bill and Hillary Clinton.
According to the group, Trump and Pence are doing what Hillary Clinton did while serving as secretary of state — funneling foreign money to enterprises they’re affiliated with. Much like the Clintons funneled money to the Clinton Foundation during Hillary’s reign as secretary of state, Trump and Pence are cutting deals with foreign dignitaries, directing money to the Trump Organization, as alleged by the organization.
“The president’s luxury hotel seems to be the place for foreign governments,” the ad says, after pointing out that Pence “railed against the Clintons” for accepting contributions from foreign diplomats and government officials.
The advertisement also features a montage of news stories about Bahraini and Saudi Arabian officials spending money at properties owned by the Trump Organization and claims that the president has cut deals with China to benefit his other businesses.
The ad also slams Pence for saying “who cares” when asked about foreign officials spending money at Trump-owned properties, reminding the vice president that he had described the Clinton Foundation’s decision to accept foreign money as a “conflict of interest.”
In a statement, Republicans for the Rule of Law legal advisor and spokesman Chris Truax accused Trump and Pence of “corruption,” noting that the Clinton Foundation is a nonprofit, while the Trump Organization is a for-profit business, which he said makes the president’s actions worse than the Clintons’.
“Americans know this, and even the appearance of corruption damages our institutions and our faith in government. It was wrong when, as secretary of state, Hillary Clinton allowed the non-profit Clinton Foundation to accept cash from foreign governments. It’s doubly wrong when President Trump allows foreign governments to pour money into his for-profit hotels.”
As Newsweek notes, the ad will air amid intense speculation that numerous foreign governments are booking expensive stays at Trump’s hotels.
If true, the allegations would be a clear violation of the Emoluments Clauses of the Constitution, which forbids elected politicians from receiving gifts from foreign entities, according to legal experts.
Republicans for the Rule of Law has previously paid for similar advertisements. As The Inquisitr reported, the group in June aired a video montage of conservative legal experts accusing Trump of obstructing justice in special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe.