Won't back down on Trump lawsuit, says NY Attorney General
Lawyers for US President Donald Trump have asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit brought against his charitable foundation by New York's Attorney General, arguing that it was politically motivated. In a statement, the Attorney General's office said it won't back down from the lawsuit which claims Trump Foundation functioned as a personal piggy bank to serve Trump's business and political interests. Here's more.
Trump's attorney says lawsuit is totally politically motivated
Trump's attorney, Alan S Futerfas, in the motion on Thursday argued that former NYAG, General Eric Schneiderman, wanted to attack Trump whenever possible and used his public antipathy for Trump to solicit donations for his own re-election campaign and advance his career aspirations.
There were reports that Foundation personally benefited Trump
Schneiderman began investigating the Trump Foundation in 2016 following Washington Post reports that its spending personally benefited the presidential candidate. Schneiderman ordered the Foundation to stop fundraising in New York. Schneiderman resigned in May after allegations that he physically abused women he had dated. He denied the claims. His successor, Democratic Attorney General Barbara Underwood, filed the lawsuit in June.
Lawsuit seeks compensation of $2.8 million and Foundation's disbandment
Underwood claimed the Trump Foundation was little more than a checkbook for payments from Trump or his businesses to nonprofits, regardless of their purpose or legality. The suit seeks $2.8mn in restitution and the Foundation's disbandment. The filing said Underwood continued the inflammatory rhetoric, stating publicly that she considers her battles with the President the most important work she has ever done.
Futerfas puts allegations of AG being partial to Clinton Foundation
"Trump very publicly announced his intention to dissolve the Foundation and donate all of its remaining funds to charity, but the AG actively stonewalled dissolution," Futerfas said. "Meanwhile, the NYAG turned a blind-eye to significant allegations of misconduct involving the Clinton Foundation, including claims that it, and its subsidiaries, violated NY law by failing to disclose $225mn in donations from foreign governments," Futerfas said.
Trump's lawyers say clerical errors were also corrected
Trump's lawyers also argued that several impermissible donations by the Foundation were due to clerical errors and were all corrected when brought to the attention of the Foundation officials. In a statement, the Attorney General's office said it will not back down from holding the US President and his associates accountable for their violations of the New York law.
