Eleanor Finch
Former US President Donald Trump has been accused of violating the US Constitution in numerous ways, including his refusal to divest himself of his business interests, his spending freeze, and his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. Trump's order to end birthright citizenship was temporarily blocked by a federal judge who called it a blatantly unconstitutional order. Trump's firing of 18 inspectors general, who serve as independent officials auditing and investigating agencies, has also been condemned by legal experts and Democratic lawmakers. Trump has also been accused of violating the Impoundment Control Act by withholding Defense Department aid for Ukraine without Congressional authorization. In addition, Trump was impeached for incitement of insurrection following the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, and charged with obstructing an official proceeding. These actions, according to some historians and legal scholars, demonstrate a greater willingness than his predecessors to violate the Constitution and federal law.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Violating conflict-of-interest laws | Trump retained ownership of the Trump Organization, assigning operational responsibility to his sons, Eric and Donald Jr. |
| Violating the Impoundment Control Act | Unilaterally withholding $214 million in Defense Department aid for Ukraine without Congressional authorization |
| Incitement of insurrection | Trump's supporters stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to overturn the 2020 election result |
| Obstruction of justice | Firing 18 inspectors general, who serve as independent officials who audit and investigate agencies for waste, fraud and abuse |
| Undermining civil and human rights | Pardoning violent criminals, firing civil servants, dissolving federal agencies, and taking taxpayer money |
| Violating civil and human rights laws | Found liable for sexual abuse and defamation, and convicted of falsifying business records |
| Violating financial reporting laws | Found liable for fraud regarding the overvaluation of the Trump Organization and his net worth |
| Violating racketeering laws | N/A |
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What You'll Learn
Conflict of interest and foreign entanglements
There are numerous ways in which former US President Donald Trump has allegedly broken the law and violated the Constitution. One of the most prominent issues is his handling of conflict of interest and foreign entanglements.
Trump's far-flung business interests and refusal to divest himself of ownership in his businesses have raised serious concerns about conflicts of interest and potential violations of the Constitution's "emoluments" clause. Norman Eisen and Richard Painter, former ethics experts for Presidents Obama and George W. Bush, along with Harvard constitutional scholar Laurence Tribe, warned that Trump presented more conflict of interest questions and foreign entanglements than any other president-elect in US history. They argued that the only way for Trump to avoid receiving benefits from foreign governments or their agents was to sell his business and create a blind trust for his assets, as his predecessors had done.
Instead, Trump transferred management of the Trump Organization to his sons, Eric and Donald Jr., while retaining full ownership. This arrangement has been widely condemned as insufficient, as it allows him to profit from ongoing business with foreign agents and use the power of the presidency to benefit his corporate brand. Trump's tax lawyer, Sheri Dillon, defended these partial measures, claiming that selling the assets would be difficult. However, Walter Shaub, head of the US Office of Government Ethics, dismissed the plan as "meaningless."
Trump's actions have also been criticised by members of his own party. Republican Congressman Darrell Issa stated that Trump's refusal to fully divest himself of his business holdings was a "problem" and that the President should have followed the example of previous presidents. Despite these concerns, Trump has shown a greater willingness than his predecessors to violate the Constitution and federal law, according to historians and legal scholars.
Trump's disregard for addressing potential conflicts of interest and his unprecedented actions as president have led to accusations of lawlessness and constitutional violations. His actions related to foreign entanglements and conflicts of interest have been a significant part of the broader concerns about his administration's respect for the rule of law and the Constitution.
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Incitement of insurrection
On January 6, 2021, supporters of then-President Donald Trump attacked the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. The attack, which disrupted a joint session of Congress assembled to count the electoral college votes and confirm Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election, resulted in the deaths of five people and left many injured.
In the aftermath of the attack, attention turned to the role played by Trump in inciting the insurrection. Trump was accused of encouraging his supporters to march on the Capitol and disrupt the certification of the election results. At a "Stop the Steal" rally held earlier that day, Trump told the crowd, many of whom he knew were armed and prepared for violence, "We're going to walk down to the Capitol" to "fight like hell." According to CREW's (Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington) analysis, of the 210 people charged for crimes committed on January 6 who said they were answering Trump's calls, 120 specifically cited Trump's remarks as the reason they went to the Capitol. This included members of far-right groups such as the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, as well as individual members of the public, who considered Trump their leader and believed they were following his instructions.
Trump's role in inciting the insurrection led to his second impeachment by the House of Representatives on January 13, 2021. He was charged with "incitement of insurrection," becoming the only US president to be impeached twice. The Senate trial, which was held after Trump had already left office, failed to convict him, with a vote of 57-43 in favor, falling short of the two-thirds majority required.
The January 6 attack and Trump's role in it have had significant repercussions. There was widespread condemnation of the attack, with many countries and international organizations expressing concern and specifically condemning Trump's role in inciting the violence. The attack also led to resignations within the Trump administration and companies halting political donations. Security measures for the inauguration of Joe Biden were significantly heightened, with the deployment of 25,000 National Guard members.
The House Jan. 6 committee's final report, released in December 2022, asserted that Trump criminally engaged in a "multi-part conspiracy" to overturn the election results and failed to act to stop his supporters from attacking the Capitol. The report detailed how Trump had "lit the fire" of insurrection, with his false claims of election fraud and direct appeals to his supporters. The committee recommended that the Justice Department investigate Trump for his role in the insurrection.
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Violating the Impoundment Control Act
The Impoundment Control Act (ICA) of 1974 is a fiscal statute that protects Congress's constitutional power of the purse and prevents unlawful executive overreach. It specifies that the President can only impound discretionary funds, including infrastructure and defense spending, and not mandatory funding, such as Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare.
Trump has been accused of violating the Impoundment Control Act by freezing federal spending. In a 2023 campaign video, Trump claimed that "it was undisputed that the president had the constitutional power to stop unnecessary spending" by using impoundment. He further promised to use "the president's long-recognized impoundment power to squeeze the bloated federal bureaucracy for massive savings".
However, legal scholars argue that there is no inherent Presidential power in the Constitution to impound. Impoundment, defined as unilateral action taken by the executive branch to delay or cancel appropriations enacted into law, has always been unlawful. Trump's spending freeze was described by historian Julian Zelizer as "an effort to essentially ignore Congress's constitutional power of the purse and to throw the Impoundment Act in the garbage".
Trump's administration has defended their actions, with Russell Vought, Trump's OMB director, characterizing the administration's actions as programmatic delays, which some experts agree do not violate the ICA. Nevertheless, at least three of Trump's Day 1 Executive Orders have been criticized for calling for unlawful impoundment, specifically, unlawful deferrals, which, if withheld long enough, can turn into unlawful cancellations.
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Pardoning violent criminals
One of the ways in which former US President Donald Trump broke the Constitution was by pardoning violent criminals. During his tenure, Trump pardoned several individuals who had been convicted of violent crimes, including manslaughter, rape, and domestic violence.
In his first term, Trump granted clemency to 237 individuals, all of whom were charged or convicted of federal criminal offenses. While the president's power to grant clemency is derived from the Constitution, the process by which Trump granted clemency raised concerns among legal experts. Trump often bypassed the Department of Justice's Office of the Pardon Attorney (OPA), which typically reviews pardon requests. Instead, he granted clemency to well-connected offenders who had not followed the standard petition process.
Notably, Trump pardoned individuals involved in the January 6 Capitol riot, some of whom had prior criminal convictions for violent crimes. Trump's pardons applied specifically to offenses related to the events of January 6, 2021, at or near the United States Capitol. This meant that those pardoned individuals who had additional charges unrelated to the Capitol riot still faced legal consequences for their other crimes.
In addition to the Capitol rioters, Trump pardoned four Blackwater guards convicted of killing Iraqi civilians in the 2007 Nisour Square massacre. He also pardoned white-collar criminals and individuals connected to the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Many of Trump's pardons were granted to people with personal or political connections to him, raising further questions about the appropriateness of his use of presidential pardon powers.
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Obstruction of justice
The potential obstruction of justice by former US President Donald Trump has been a significant concern for legal experts and lawmakers. Trump has been accused of obstructing justice in several instances, with three main theories underpinning these accusations.
The first theory relates to the obstruction of official proceedings, such as congressional or grand jury proceedings. Trump has been accused of interfering with investigations, including the Mar-a-Lago investigation and the January 6 committee's probe into the 2021 Capitol attack. The latter resulted in the House of Representatives voting to impeach Trump for a second time. Trump was also accused of pressuring then-Vice President Mike Pence to count fake electors, which was part of a plot to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
The second theory involves witness intimidation. During the summer of 2022, the January 6 committee revealed that Trump and his advisers had contacted witnesses providing information to Congress, which could be construed as an attempt to intimidate or influence their testimony.
The third theory is conspiracy. Trump has been accused of conspiring with others to obstruct justice. For example, he allegedly ordered Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to draft a memo on Comey's conduct, which was then used as a pretext for Comey's firing. Trump was also indicted on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding.
Trump's actions regarding government documents held at his Mar-a-Lago resort have also raised concerns about potential obstruction of justice. There are reports that Trump directed his lawyers to falsely state that all requested documents had been returned to the National Archives, when in fact, months later, the FBI seized additional boxes of material from the resort.
Legal scholars and ethics experts have expressed concern about Trump's conduct, with some arguing that he has shown a greater willingness than his predecessors to violate the Constitution and federal law. The Mueller report, which investigated Trump's potential obstruction of justice, provides a comprehensive analysis of his actions and their potential implications for justice obstruction.
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