Raskin Demands Trump To Return $7.8 Million in Payments Made by Foreign Govt. During His Tenure

Congressman Jamie Raskin has attacked former President Donald Trump and asked him to refund the $7.8 million from foreign governments that his companies accepted under his contentious presidency. In a letter made public by Raskin, following a report by House Oversight Committee Democrats, the 100-page report meticulously analyzes the payments, highlighting Trump and his acceptance of foreign funds from China, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.

The report asserts that these financial transactions violate the Foreign Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, as per HuffPost reports. Raskin, addressing Trump directly in the letter, wrote, "I write today to demand that you immediately return to the American people the $7,886,072 that we know you have accepted from foreign governments in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s Foreign Emoluments Clause—a fact you admitted, once again, at a Fox News town hall this week."

During his presidency, Trump maintained control over his business empire, which included hotels, real estate, golf courses, and resorts, through a revocable trust led by his sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump. Raskin emphasized that the Emoluments Clause explicitly prohibits the receipt of anything of value from foreign governments, not just profits. The released report on January 3 discloses that Trump's businesses received $7.8 million in payments from foreign governments throughout his time in office. Notably, a substantial portion, $5.6 million, originated from China and was expended in Trump's hotels located in Las Vegas, Washington, and Trump Tower in New York.

Raskin also criticized what he deemed a "ludicrous and half-hearted approach" by The Trump Organization, referring to their 'voluntary donation' policy, which he argued was underinclusive and lacked proper oversight. He contended that the $7.8 million figure is likely an incomplete account and represents only a fraction of the money Trump received. In response to these allegations, Trump defended the foreign payments during a recent Fox News town hall, stating, "If I have a hotel and somebody comes in from China, that’s a small amount of money, and it sounds like a lot of money. That’s a small [amount of money], but I was doing services for that." Trump's son, Eric, claimed that the profits from these payments were donated to the Treasury Department.

During conclusive arguments in New York City's civil court last Friday, Attorney General Letitia James formally asserted that Trump should be held accountable for $370 million. Despite previous findings by Judge Arthur Engoron holding him responsible, he cited unanimous support from experts and analysts in a Truth Social post. He stated, “Almost all experts and legal analysts have stated, for all to see, that the Litigation before Judge Engoron is a sham and disgrace, a dark time in New York Judicial history. I did nothing wrong.”