IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 51 

Calling on President Donald J. Trump to comply with the Emoluments 

Clause of the United States Constitution. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 28, 2019 

Ms. LOFGREN submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 

referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Calling on President Donald J. Trump to comply with the 

Emoluments Clause of the United States Constitution. 

Whereas article 1, section 9, clause 8 of the United States 

Constitution states: ‘‘no person holding any office of profit or trust . . . shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title 

of any kind whatever, for any king, prince, or foreign 

state’’; 

Whereas in Federalist No. 22 (Alexander Hamilton) it is 

said, ‘‘One of the weak sides of republics, among their 

numerous advantages, is that they afford too easy an 

inlet to foreign corruption’’; 

Whereas the delegates to the Constitutional Convention specifically designed the Emoluments Clause as an antidote 

to potentially corrupting foreign practices of a kind that 


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•HCON 51 IH 

the Framers had observed during the period of the Confederation; 

Whereas the word emoluments means profit, salary, fees, or 

compensation which would include direct payment as well 

as other benefits including extension of credit, forgiveness 

of debt, or the granting of rights of pecuniary value; 

Whereas in 2009, the Office of Legal Counsel clarified that 

corporations owned or controlled by foreign governments 

presumptively qualify as foreign States under the Foreign 

Emoluments Clause; 

Whereas against the advice of ethics attorneys and the Office 

of Government Ethics, the President has refused to divest his ownership stake in his businesses; 

Whereas the then-Director of the nonpartisan Office of Government Ethics said that the President’s transfer of his 

business holdings to a trust managed by family members 

is ‘‘meaningless’’ and ‘‘does not meet the standards that 

. . . every president in the past four decades has met’’; 

Whereas Congress has previously given its consent for sitting 

presidents to accept foreign emoluments, after being 

given the opportunity to review the gift; 

Whereas Congress can only give its consent for emoluments 

received by a president if the president provides information on the emoluments he has received from foreign 

sources, including the amount, the source, and the circumstances under which the emolument was received; 

Whereas President Trump has failed to provide Congress the 

opportunity to review any information related to emoluments he has received and continues to receive, denying 

Congress the opportunity to fulfill its duty to review and 

consent to the emoluments; 


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•HCON 51 IH 

Whereas the President is a part owner of an office building 

on the Avenue of the Americas in New York City, reportedly carrying a $950 million loan, partially held by the 

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China; 

Whereas the Governments of Afghanistan, India, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, and Thailand all leased space in Trump World Tower in Manhattan during the first eight months of the presidency; 

Whereas since the start of his presidency, the Government of 

China has approved 40 new trademarks to President 

Trump and his companies; 

Whereas in January and February 2017, the Saudi Government paid $270,000 for a lobbying firm’s hotel room and 

other expenses at Trump International Hotel Washington, DC; 

Whereas on February 25, 2017, the Embassy of Kuwait held 

its National Day Celebration at Trump International 

Hotel in Washington, DC, reportedly spending an estimated amount between $40,000 and $60,000 on the celebration; 

Whereas the Prime Ministers of Malaysia and Romania have 

stayed at the Trump International Hotel during official 

visits to Washington, DC; 

Whereas in September, Turkish Airlines, which is partly 

owned by the Turkish Government, held its World Golf 

Cup at the Trump National Golf Club—DC in Potomac 

Falls, Virginia; 

Whereas government-run television networks in the United 

Kingdom and Vietnam pay royalties for broadcasting 

spinoffs of the Celebrity Apprentice, a show for which the 

President retains his Executive Producer title; and 


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Whereas the President continues to engage in business transactions with foreign governments by maintaining a business interest in over 500 entities including, both commercial and residential real estate properties, management 

and media companies, and shell corporations set up to 

capitalize on licensing deals: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 

2 concurring), That Congress— 

3 (1) calls on President Donald J. Trump to take 

4 measures, consistent with the advice of the Office of 

5 Legal Ethics and precedent set by previous Presi6 dents, to ensure compliance with the Emoluments 

7 Clause of the United States Constitution; 

8 (2) declares President Donald J. Trump’s re9 ceipt of foreign emoluments without the opportunity 

10 for Congressional review and consent a violation of 

11 the Emoluments Clause of the United States Con12 stitution; and 

13 (3) directs President Donald J. Trump to dis14 close to Congress all information related to foreign 

15 emoluments received, including but not limited to 

16 personal and business tax documents, to enable Con17 gress to fulfill its Constitutional duty to ensure that 

18 Federal officeholders are free of corruption. 

Æ 


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