Can a sitting president make money while in office

President Donald Trump and his business dealings are profiting from him being in the White House. President Donald Trump has been stapled to the news headlines for more than two straight years. But as most people have focused on the bigger, sexier scandals surrounding the Trump administration — Russia, mostly — smaller, but equally robust issues plague the president. The big issue? Trump is actively profiting from the presidency, which is something that the framers never intended. We know, already, that taxpayer money has been flowing to some of his businesses, like Mar-a-Lago. Yet, in spite of the public seeing their tax dollars flow directly into the Trump Organization, no one has stepped up to put a stop to it — despite the rules being laid out in the Constitution. How is he making money? The Trump Organization has properties all around the world. First of all, we have to touch on the Trump Organization. But we do know that Trump promised to divest himself — or to walk away — from his business while in office.

Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories. While presidents can take trips to the golf course or summer homes, they are accompanied by aides, advisors, and heavy security, and work still happens outside the White House. Read more: These are the top 20 US presidents and why you won’t find Trump on the list. Aside from having to work on the beach, presidents have several perks that lift a financial burden off their shoulders. US law requires the president of the United States to be paid a salary while in office. Presidents and their families usually do not receive or accept clothing as a «gift» from designers, like celebrities on the red carpet. If a piece is accepted as a gift, it is immediately housed in the National Archives after being worn. Aside from a prestigious title and global recognition, take a look at the financial perks that come with being the most powerful person in the US and quite possibly, the world. While a presidential salary is taxable, the other bonus benefits are not, according to the US tax code. The White House has housed US presidents since The estate has six floors and rooms, including a bowling alley and chocolate store, Business Insider’s Mark Abadi previously reported. One of the rooms is a fully equipped fitness center with a tennis court and swimming pool.

Michelle Obama started work on the White House garden during her husband’s presidency. Melania Trump continued Obama’s work and the tradition of hosting school children on the grounds, according to CNN. Today, the garden’s fruits and vegetables regularly appear on the White House menu. The White House is also home to nearly permanent residents including maids, cooks, a plumber, a florist, and a head housekeeper, according to GoBankingRates.

Making money in office

UPDATE: A federal appeals court panel on July 10, , ordered the dismissal of a lawsuit claiming President Trump has violated the Constitution by collecting profits from government guests at his Washington hotel. The Constitution prohibits the president from accepting payments from foreign and domestic governments. President Trump owns hotels and other properties that are frequented by foreign and domestic government officials. These facts, claim plaintiffs in two lawsuits that have cleared several hurdles, add up to repeated and multiple violations of the Constitution by the president.

Some legal experts have suggested Mueller could invoke this exception if he has uncovered serious wrongdoing and lacked confidence in the ability of the divided Congress to hold Trump accountable. According to this view, immunity for the president violates the fundamental principle that nobody is above the law. The Economist explains How European Commissioners are appointed. Reuse this content The Trust Project. Josh Ocampo. The practical effect is that Trump gets away with it. Another strategy is to bypass the OLC and have state attorneys general pursue charges under relevant state laws. The A. After the independent counsel statute under which Starr was named expired in , the Justice Department devised procedures governing the appointment of special counsels to handle certain investigations. Twice in the past half-century executive misdeeds have spurred the Office of Legal Counsel OLC , a unit of the Department of Justice charged with giving legal advice to the president, to weigh in on whether such indictments are valid. Cases like these have now opened up a larger investigation by Democrats into President Trump personally profiting from his presidency by using his office to steer customers towards his businesses.

Does the Constitution put limits on a president’s private business ties?

Supreme Court has not directly addressed the question. Some lawyers also have said Mueller is dan bound by the and memos because he is not a typical employee of the department. And what will the special counsel, Robert Mueller, do if he finds evidence that the president is implicated in crimes having to do with Siitting interference in the election? But an impeached president is only sent packing from the Prewident House if 67 senators should vote to remove. What happens if prosecutors think that Mr Trump may have broken campaign-finance laws by directing Michael Cohen and American Media Inc publisher of the «National Enquirer» to send hush-money cheques in the weeks leading up to the election? Many federal crimes have a five-year statute of limitations, meaning prosecutors have five years from the date the conduct at issue occurred to bring an indictment. Cases male these have now opened up a larger investigation by Democrats into President Trump personally profiting from his presidency by using his office to steer customers towards his businesses. Josh Ocampo. Trump appointee William Barr currently holds that post. About the author Josh Ocampo. Share This Story.

Presidents get to live in the luxurious White House.

What happens if prosecutors think that Mr Trump may have broken campaign-finance laws by directing Michael Cohen and American Media Inc publisher of the «National Enquirer» to send hush-money cheques in the weeks leading up to the election? And what will the special counsel, Can a sitting president make money while in office Mueller, do if he finds evidence that the president is implicated in crimes having to do with Russian interference in the election?

Can a grand jury indict a sitting president for a criminal act? Mr Trump is not the first president to wade into trouble. Twice in the past half-century executive misdeeds have spurred the Office of Legal Counsel OLCa unit of the Department of Justice charged with giving legal advice to the president, to weigh in on whether such indictments are valid. It is not particularly surprising that executive-branch officials serving at the pleasure of the president would oversee an office that comes to these conclusions.

But there are rival views. In a page memo from uncovered last summer by the New York TimesKenneth Starr, the independent counsel who investigated Mr Clinton, argued that nothing immunises sitting presidents from indictment and possibly even imprisonment. Laurence Tribe, a law professor at Harvard, agrees. One option is to give it a go and pursue indictments while Mr Trump is in office, letting the DoJ decide on their propriety and whether potential trials would have to wait for the president to leave office.

If the DoJ balks and Mr Trump wins re-election, criminal charges will be hard to pin on the president after he leaves office because, under the five-year statute of limitations for campaign-finance violations, those charges will expire in and there is no legally established way to stop the clock in the interim. Another strategy is to bypass the OLC and have state attorneys general pursue charges under relevant state laws.

Then there is the alternative to criminal charges: impeachment. The constitution assigns the power of impeachment to the House of Representatives, which may rebuke a president by a simple majority, as it did to Andrew Johnson in and to Bill Clinton in But an impeached president is only sent packing from the White House if 67 senators should vote to remove.

Given how dutifully most GOP senators seem to line up behind Mr Trump, it may be difficult to find 20 of them to join 47 Democrats and, for the first time in American history, remove a president from office. Explaining the world, daily The Economist explains. Reuse this content The Trust Project. The Economist explains How European Commissioners are appointed. The best of our journalism, handpicked each day Sign up to our free daily newsletter, The Economist today Sign up .

Trump’s White House Has Been A Money-Making Machine

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Presidents receive a six-figure salary.

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