Donald Trump has accepted at least $7.8 million (7.1 million euros) from foreign governments during his presidency, according to a Democratic investigation. According to an investigative committee of the House of Representatives, the money came in through hotels and other Trump businesses, reports ‘The New York Times’.
The extensive ‘White House For Sale’ report, which runs to some 156 pages, shows that Trump received money from twenty foreign governments during his term of office. The most money ($5.5 million) came from China, followed by Saudi Arabia with $615,000. The documents also refer to statements by Trump about his income. For example, he reportedly suggested during a campaign meeting in 2015 that he could “get along great with Saudi Arabia” because they “give him 40 or 50 million for apartments.”
“By putting his personal financial interests and the policy priorities of corrupt foreign powers ahead of the American public interest, former President Trump has clearly violated the Constitution and broken with the methods of his predecessors,” writes Representative Jamie Raskin in the foreword to the report.
Banned by US Constitution
The U.S. Constitution prohibits a president from accepting money, taxes, or gifts from foreign governments and monarchs unless he receives approval from Congress. But permission was never requested in this case, the report said.
The Democrats in the House of Representatives accused Trump of having done things that he blames his successor Joe Biden for. The latter is the subject of an impeachment investigation because Republicans say he abused his power as vice president under Barack Obama (2009-2017) for business contacts for his son Hunter in China and Ukraine. The difference is that Republicans have been unable to substantiate their claims, Democrats said in the report.
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