Wednesday was fraught with frustration for President Donald Trump, whose personal charity was ordered closed in the midst of a long-standing lawsuit.
The decision, reports POLITICO, came about through a lawsuit filed by former New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. Schneiderman resigned earlier this year after being accused of sexual misconduct.
Venting over Twitter, Trump slammed a perceived “double standard of justice’ being applied to him by New York Democrats, including Schneiderman and Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Trump said the suit was filed just as he was trying to shut down the charity, “so as not to be in conflict with politics.”
“The Trump Foundation has done great work and given away lots of money, both mine and others, to great charities over the years—with me taking NO fees, rent, salaries etc.,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “Now, as usual, I am getting slammed by Cuomo and Dems in a long running civil lawsuit started by sleazebag AG Eric Schneiderman, who has since resigned over horrific women abuse.”
POLITICO writes that the president’s complaints ‘come one day’ after current New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood announced that the Trump Foundation had agreed to dissolve and disburse its remaining funds to non-profit organizations.
However, Underwood and the state’s lawsuit against Trump and several of his family members will continue. If successful, the suit could bar President Trump and his three eldest children from joining the governing boards of other New York charities. It’d also compel the commander-in-chief to offer millions of dollars in restitution to defrauded donors.
…sleazebag AG Eric Schneiderman, who has since resigned over horrific women abuse, when I wanted to close the Foundation so as not to be in conflict with politics. Shady Eric was head of New Yorkers for Clinton, and refused to even look at the corrupt Clinton Foundation……
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 19, 2018
“This is an important victory for the rule of law, making clear that there is one set of rules for everyone,” Underwood said.
Underwood claims that the Trump Foundation has functioned “as little more than a checkbook to serve Mr. Trump’s business and political interests” and has, to that end, engaged in a “shocking pattern of illegality.”
The New York Attorney General’s Office claims the foundation essentially acted as an appendage of the Trump campaign during the 2016 presidential elections. E-mails indicate that Trump campaign director Corey Lewandowski directed the charity to write checks to Iowa before the state’s primary.
“Is there any way we can make some disbursements [from the proceeds of a fundraiser] this week while in Iowa? Specifically on Saturday?” Lewandowski asked in an e-mail to the Trump Foundation’s treasurer.
An investigation into the Trump Foundation’s finances suggest that the charity’s money may have been used to commission portraits of the president and purchase an official NFL helmet signed by quarterback Tim Tebow.
Trump purportedly tried to shut down the foundation following the election. Underwood said the planned closure was intended to proceed without any oversight, despite allegations of illegal activity.
“We’ll continue to move our suit forward,” Underwood said, “to ensure that the Trump Foundation and its directors are held to account for their clear and repeated violations of state and federal law.”
Sources
Trump complains of ‘double standard’ in lawsuit targeting his charity
Trump Foundation Will Dissolve, Accused of ‘Shocking Pattern of Illegality’
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