IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYI.AND

Greenbelt Division

THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

44i Fourth Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 2000 l,

and

THE STATE OF MARYII,ND

200 Saint Paul Place, 20th Floor
Baltimore, Maryland 21,202,
Civil Action No
Plaintiffs,

DONALD J. TRUMP, in his official capacity

as President of the United States of America
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20500,

Defendant.

COMPI.AINT
BRreNE. FnosH KanlA. RcrNEx
Attorney General of Maryland Attorney General for the District of Columbia

SrnvnxM. SuluveN Naraun O. Lurawev

Federal Bar No. 24930 Chief Deputy Attorney General
ssullivan@oag. state. md.us Federal Bar No. 12533
PerrucrB. Hucnes natalie.ludaway@dc. gov
Federal Bar No. 19+92 SropHaNrn E. Lrros*
[email protected] Senior Counsel to the Attorney General
Assistant Attorneys General stephanie.litos@dc. gov
200 Saint Paul Place, 20th Floor 441 Fourth Street, N.W.
Baltimore, Maryland 21202 Washington, D.C. 20001
T: (al0) 576-6325 T: (202) 72+-r52r
F: (al0) 576-69s5 F: (202) 730-1837

*pro hac uice aplication

fortlrcoming
NoeH D. BoorsrNBR*
nbookbinder@citizensforethics. org
SrueRr C. McPurr,*
smcphail@citizensforethics. org
Citizens for Responsibility and
Ethics in Washington
455 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., 6th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20001
T: (202)408-5565
F: (202) 5BB-5020

*pro hac aice lic ation forthc oming

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. Nature of the action I

II. Parties, jurisdiction, and venue 7

III. Legal background I

IV. Relevant facts....... l0

A, The defendant's Foreign Emoluments Clause violations... .................... l0

B. The defendant's Domestic Emoluments Clause violations......... 24

C. Post-inauguration premium for the defendant's goods and services 30

D. The plaintifns'interests in this litigation 30

V. Claims 4T

VI. Prayer for relief 44

 I.
NATURE OF THE ACTION

l. This is an action against DonaldJ. Trump in his official capacity as President of

the United States. The case involves unprecedented constitutional violations by the President

that have injured and threaten to cause continuing injury to the District of Columbia ("the

District") and the State of Marylancl ("Maryland") ancl their respective resiclents, including clirect

injury to the plaintiffs' interests in properties located in the District, in Prince George's County,

Maryland, and in Montgomery County, Maryland.

2. The lawsuit alleges violations by the President of two distinct yet related provisions

of the U.S. Constitution that seek to make certain that he faithfully seryes the American people,

free from compromising fnancial entanglements with foreign and domestic governments and

officials. The first provision, the Foreign Emoluments Clause, prohibits any "Person holding any

Ofice of Profit or Trust" from accepting "any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind

whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State," absent "the Consent of the Congress." LJ.S.

Const. art.I, $ 9, cl. B, The second, the Domestic Emoluments Clause, entitles the President to

receive a salary while in office and forbids him from "receiv[ing] within that Period any other

Emolument from the United States, or any of them." U.S. Const. art. II, $ l, cl. 7. Together,

these provisions help ensure that the President serves with undivided loyalty to the American

people, and the American people only. Our republican form of government demands no less.

3. Vested by the Constitution with extraordinary power, the President is bound by

oath to "faithfully execute" his office and "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the

United States." Since 1789, each President, regardless of temperament or ideology, has sought,

in his own way, to honor that solemn vow. Yet fundamental to a President's fidelity to that oath

is the Constitution's demand that the President, as the highest officeholder in the land,

I
disentangle his private finances from those of domestic and foreign powers. Never before has a

President acted with such disregard for this constitutional prescription.

+, President Trump's continued ownership interest in a global business empire,

which renders him deeply enmeshed with a legion of foreign and domestic government actors,

violates the Constitution and calls into que stion the rule of law and the integrity of the country's

political system. Whatever the sincerity of the persons involved, foreign and domestic officials are

put in the position of considering whether ofnering benefits to businesses associated with the

President is important to maintaining goodwill. Ancl irrespective of whether such benefits affect

the Presiclent's decision-making or shift his foreign or domestic policy, uncertainty about whether

the Presiclent is acting in the best interests of the American people, or rather for his own encls or

personal enrichment, inflicts lasting harm on our democracy. The Framers of the Constitution

foresaw that possibility, and acted to prevent that harm,

5. The Emoluments Clauses are two critical, closely relatecl anticorruption

provisions aimed at ensuring that the President faithfully serves the peole, free from the distorting

or compromising eflects of financial inducements provided by foreign nations, their leaclers,

individual states in the Union, Congress, or other parts of the federal government. They ensure

that Americans do not have to guess whether a President who orders their sons and daughters to

die in foreign lands acts out of concern for his private business interests; they do not have to

wonder if they lost their job due to trade negotiations in which the President has a personal stake;

and they never have to question whether the President can sit across the bargaining table from

foreign leaders and faithfully represent the world's most powerful democracy, unencumbered by

fear of harming his own companies.

6. With respect to the Foreign Emoluments Clause, the Framers were aware that

entanglements between American officials and foreign powers could pose a creeping, insidious

2
threat to the Republic. The theory underlying the clause, informed by English history and by the

Framers' experience, is that a federal officeholder who receives something of value from a foreign

government can be imperceptibly induced to compromise what the Constitution insists be his

only loyalty: the best interest of the United States of America. And rather than address such

corruption by punishing it after the fact, the Framers concluded tt ut tft" best solution was to

write a strict prophylactic rule into the Constitution itself, thereby guaranteeing that improper

incentives never undo this important safeguarcl of'American autonomy. Appliecl to Presiclent

Trump's diverse dealings, the text and purpose of the clause speak as one: absent the consent of

Congress, private enrichment through the receipt of benefits from foreign governments is

prohibited.r

7, The Domestic Emoluments Clause was also designed to protect the government

from corruption. The Founders intencled the clause to serve as a guarantee that Congress, other

parts of the fecleral government, and the states "can neither weaken fthe President's] fortitude by

operating on his necessities, nor corrupt his integrity by appealing to his avarice."2 The Framers

further intended the clause to protect against self-dealing by ensuring that the President's service

is remunerated only by the compensation fxed in advance by Congress.

B. Relatedly, and in ways particularly important to the plaintiffs, the Domestic

Emoluments Clause shields the states and the District of Columbia from undue pressure to

I Norman L. Eisen, Richard Painter & Laurence H. Tribe, The Emolummts Clause: Its
Text, Meaning and Application to Donald J. Trum (Dec. 16, 2016), htq / /brook,gs/2hGlMbW; see
also Applicability of Emoluments Clause to Employment of Government Employees by Foreign
Public Universities, 18 Op. O.L.C. 13, lB (1994) ("Those who hold ofces uncler the Unitecl
States must give the government their unclouded judgment and their uncompromised loyalty,
That judgment might be biased, and that loyalty divided, if they received financial benefits from
a foreign government.").
z The Federalist No. 73 (Alexander Hamilton).

J
provide emoluments to the President, and protects them from reprisal for any refusal to do so. In

a similar vein, the provision safeguards the states and the District from unfair advantages certain

states may enjoy from opportunities to curry favor from the President by providing emoluments

that other states lack.

9. President Trump, acting through companies he owns or controls, has violated

both the Foreign Emoluments Clause ancl the Domestic Emoluments Clause by receiving

millions of dollars in payments, benefits, and other valuable consideration from foreign

governments and persons acting on their behalf, as well as federal agencies ancl state

governments. His repeated, ongoing violations include remuneration derived from: (a) leases of

Trump properties held by foreign-government-owned entities; (b) purchase and ownership of

condominiums in Trump properties by foreign governments or foreign-government-controlled

entities; (c) other property interests or business dealings tied to foreign governments; (cl) hotel

accommodations, restaurant purchases, the use of venues for events, and purchases of other

services and goods by foreign governments and diplomats at hotels, restaurants, and other

domestic and international properties owned, operatecl, or licensed by President Trump;

(e) continuation of the General Services Administration lease for President Trump's Washington,

D.C. hotel despite his breach of the lease's terms, and potential provision of federal tax credits in

connection with the same property; and (f) payments from foreign-government-owned

broadcasters related to rebroadcasts and foreign versions of the television program "The

Apprentice" and its spinoffs. Moreover, President Trump, by asserting that he will maintain the

interests at issue, is poised to engage in similar constitutional violations for the duration of his

presidency.

10. These present and continuing violations of the Constitution's anti-corruption

protections threaten the free and independent self-governance at the core of our democracy. The

+
President is making decisions every day with profound and far-reaching effects on American life,

from determining who can travel into the country to deciding whether the United States will

abandon global efforts to combat climate change; from proposing budgets to overseeing the

federal workforce; from evaluating who will pay more in taxes to choosing how people will access

health care. Yet Americans are left uncertain as to whether these decisions, with their sweeping

impact on foreign and domestic policy, are driven solely by unyielding loyalty to the country's

best interests, or rather are affected by self-interested motivations grounded in the international

and domestic business clealings in which President Trump's personal fortune is at stake.

I L The Presiclent's violations of the Emoluments Clauses undermine the trust the

American people are entitled to have in their government, It is fundamental to our system of sel

governance that our duly elected Presidents and the governments over which they preside will

always act in singular pursuit of our liberty, security, health, ancl well-being. President Trump's

myriad international and domestic business entanglements make him vulnerable to corrupt

influence and deprive the American people of trust in their chief executive's undivided loyalty.

12. The District and Marylancl have compelling interests in ensuring that the Foreign

and Domestic Emoluments Clauses are enforced ancl protect their residents as designed, The

President's disregard for these constitutional constraints has resulted in significant and ongoing

harm to the District and to Maryland.

l3, The District and Maryland have other sovereign, quasi-sovereign, and proprietary

interests in preventing the defendant's violations of the Emoluments Clauses. The defendant, his

organization, and its affiliates have received presents or emoluments from foreign states or

instrumentalities and federal agencies, and state and local governments in the form of payments

to the defendant's hotels, restaurants, and other properties. The defendant has used his position

as President to boost this patronage of his enterprises, and foreign diplomats and other public

5
oflicials have made clear that the defendant's position as President increases the likelihood that

they will frequent his properties and businesses.

14. The defendant's ongoing constitutional violations harm the sovereign and quasi-

sovereign interests of the District and Maryland. Maryland has an interest in preserving its role as

a separate sovereign and securing observance of the terms under which it participates in the

federal system. That interest is harmed by the clefenclant's violations of both Emoluments

Clauses, but it carries particular force with respect to the Domestic Emoluments Clause, which

exists (at least in part) for the protection of "the United States and any of them." Indeed, as

government entities with authority to tax and regulate businesses and real estate, the District and

Maryland are harmed by perceived and/or actual pressure to grant special treatment to the

defendant and his extensive affiliated enterprises, or else be placed at a disadvantage vis--vis

other states and governments that have granted or will grant such special treatment. In addition,

the District and Maryland have an interest in protecting their economies and their resiclents,

who, as the defendant's local competitors, are injurecl by clecreased business) wages, ancl tips

resulting from economic ancl commercial activity diverted to the defendant and his business

enterprises clue to his ongoing constitutinal violations. Maryland is itself further injured by the

recluction in tax revenue that flows from those violations.

15. The defendant's ongoing constitutional violations also harm the proprietary

interests of the District and Maryland. The District and Maryland suffer direct financial harm in

their capacity as proprietors of businesses that compete with the defendant's businesses, to the

extent that businesses owned by him and/or his affiliated enterprises attract customers and divert

them away from businesses that the District and Maryland own, license, or tax.

16. The District of Columbia and Maryland bring this action to stop President

Trump's violations of the Emoluments Clauses. As a direct result of those violations, the District

6
and Maryland have been injured and will continue to be injured absent relief from this Court.

To prevent these injuries, they request that this Court enter a declaratory judgment that

President Trump has violated the Foreign and Domestic Emoluments Clauses and an injunction

against violating these clauses further.

u.
PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AI\D VENUE

17. The plaintif are the District of Columbia and the State of Marylancl.

18. The District of Columbia is a municipal corporation empowered to sue and be

sued, and is the local government for the territory constituting the permanent seat of the fecleral

government, The District is representecl by and through its chief legal officer, the Attorney

General for the District of Columbia. The Attorney General has general charge and conduct of

all legal business of the District ancl all suits initiatecl by and against the District and is responsible

for upholding the public interest.

19, The State of Maryland is a sovereign state of the United States of America. The

State is represented by and through its chief legal officer, the Attorney General of Maryland. He

has general charge, supervision, ancl direction of the State's legal business, and acts as legal

aclvisor and representative of all major agencies, boarcls, commissions, and official institutions of

state government. The Attorney General's powers and duties include acting on behalf of the

State and the people of Maryland in the federal courts on matters of public concern.

20. The clefendant is the President of the United States of America. He is being sued

in his official capacity.

21. This Court has subject-matterjurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. $$ l33l and 2201.

22, Venue is proper under 28 U.S.C. $ l39l(e)(l) because the defendant is "an officer

. . . of the United States . . . acting in his ofcial capacity or under color of legal authority," and

7
the District of Maryland is a 'Judicial district" in which "a substantial part of the events or

omissions g,rirg rise to the claim occurred," and (in any event) where one of "the plaintifffs]

resides."

III.
LEGAL BACKGROUND

23, The Foregn Ernolurnents Cluse. The origins of the Foreign Emoluments

Clause go back to at least 1651, when the Dutch broke with traditional European diplomatic

customs and prohibited their foreign ministers from accepting "any presents, directly or

indirectly, in any manner or way whatever."3 The Framers also hacl the benefit of earlier

thinking by those who drafted state constitutions, inclucling Maryland's,4 and by those who

craftecl the Articles of Confederation, which containecl the clause's predecessor: "[N]or shall any

person holcling any oflice of profit or trust under the Unitecl States, or any of them, accept of any

present, emolument, office, or title of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign

State."5

2+. The Foreign Emoluments Clause was not included initially at the Constitutional

Convention, but it was added without dissent at the request of Charles Pinckney, who "urged the

necessity of preserving foreign Ministers & other officers of the U.S. independent of external

infuence."6 EdmundJennings Randolph confirmed the clause's anti-corruption purpose, stating:

3 sJohn Bassett Moore, A Digest of International Law $ 651 (1906) (quoting Dutch
Republic regulation),
+ See Md. Declaration of Rights of 177 6, an. 32 ("That no person ought to hold, at
the same time, more than one office of proft, nor ought any person, in public trust, to receive
any present from any foreign prince or state, or from the United States, or any of them, without
the approbation of this State,").
s Articles of Confederation of l78 l, art, VI, $ 1.

6 2 Farrand, Tke Records of the Federal Conuention 0f 1787, at 389,

o

"It was thought proper, in order to exclude corruption and foreign influence, to prohibit any one

in office from receiving or holding any emoluments from foreign states."7 The Framers

recognized the perils of foreign influence and corruption, even in situations subtler than quid pro

quo bribery, and they therefore created a broad constitutional prophylactic rule applicable to

anything of value given by any foreign government to anyone holding an "OfIice of Profit or

Trust under the United States," including the President.

25. Consistent with the intent of the Framers, the Foreign Emoluments Clause is

properly interpreted to cover monetary or nonmonetary transactions. Indeed, the text of the

clause bars the receipt of both a "present" and an "Emolument," which together cover anything

of value, including without limitation payments, transactions granting special treatment, and

transactions above marginal cost. The clause also explicitly bars the receipt of "any present [or]

Emolument . . . of argt kind uthateuer," emphasizing the breadth of conduct covered under the

provision.

26. The Foreign Emoluments Clause covers not only transfers of anything of value

from a king, prince, or foreign state individually, but also any transfer from instrumentalities or

agents of a foreign state. This is in keeping with the considered view of the Department of

Justice's Oflce of Legal Counsel, whose constitutional interpretations are instructive, though not

controlling.s

27. The Dornestc Ernolurnents Cl.use, The Framers also intended to prevent

the system of patronage, influence, and rent-extraction that predominated in the colonial

governors' ofTices through a Domestic Emoluments Clause applying to just the President. The

7 3 Farrand, The Records of the Federal Conuention of I 7 87 , at 327 .

t Applicability of the Emoluments Clause and the Foreign Gifts and Decorations
Act to the President's Receipt of the Nobel Peace Prize, 33 Op. O.L.C. B (2009).

9
clause provides that the President's "Compensation" shall not be increased or decreased, and

that he may not receive any "other Emolument from the United States, or any of them," during

his term of ofce. The clause thus works to ensure that neither states nor the federal government

can "weaken his fortitude by operating on his necessities, nor corrupt his integrity by appealing

to his avarice."e And because the clause is specifically concerned with the federal government as

well as the states, it does not allow for Congress to consent to the President's receipt of adclitional

emoluments beyond his salary. This ban on additional emoluments, Alexander Hamilton wrote,

would ensure that the President woulcl have "n0 pecuniary inducement to renomce or desert the

indeendence intendedr him by the Constitution."l0 Further) as recognizecl by judicial authorities, the

ban "addressed the Framers' concern that the President should not have the ability to convert his

or her ofTce for profit."

28, The Domestic Emoluments Clause reflects the Framers' particular concern about

making sure that the nation's powerful chief executive remains free from clistorting and

corrupting influences that might hinder his ability to faithfully execute his office. The clause

accordingly proscribes emoluments not only from states and the federal government, but also

their respective instrumentalities and subdivisions.

w.
RELEVANT FACTS

A. The defendantts Foreign Ernolurnents Clause violations

29. Following the defendant's inauguration, he continues to own and control

hundreds of businesses throughout the world, including hotels and otherproperties. His business

empire comprises a multitude of different corporations, limited-liability companies, limited

9
The Federalist No. 73 (Alexander Hamilton).
l0 1/. (emphasis acldecl).

l0
partnerships, and other entities that he owns or controls, in whole or in part, operating in the

United States and at least 20 foreign countries.ll His businesses are loosely organized under an

umbrella known as the "Trump Organization," consisting of the Trump Organization LLC

d/b/a The Trump Organization and The Trump Organization, Inc., both of which are owned

solely by him. But his interests also include scores of other entities not directly owned by either

Trump Organization entity but that he personally owns, owns through other entities, and/ or

controls,l2 The defendant also has several licensing agreements that provide continuing flows of

income. Through these entities and agreements, he personally benefts from business clealings,

ancl is (and will be) enriched by any business in which the entities he owns or controls engage

with foreign governments, instrumentalities, and officials.

30. OnJanuary 11, 2017, the defendant announced a plan to turn "leadership and

management" of the Trump Organization over to his sons Eric Trump and Donald TrumpJr.,

as well as a longtime company executive.13 But the plan did not include relinquishing ownership of

his businesses or establishing a blind trust.

3l, The defendant continues to own-ancl be well aware of the activities of-the

Trump Organization and other corporations, limited-liability companies, limited partnerships,

and other entities in which he retains an ownership interest. Although he formed a trust to hold

his business assets, he may obtain distributions from his trust at arry time.la

rr Marilyn Geewax & Maria Hollenhorst, Trump's Businesses And Potential Conflicts:
Sortinglt Ozl, NPR (Dec. 5, 2016), http:/ /n.pr/2g2xZDP.
t2 U,S. Office of Gov't Ethics, DonaldJ. Trump, 2016 Executive Branch Personnel
Public Financial Disclosure Report (May 16, 2016), http://bit.lyl2gBUwlV.
13 Donald Trum's News Conference: Full Transcrt and Video, N.Y. Times (Jan. I 1,2017),
http : / / nyti.ms / 2jkFUPK.
t4 David Kravitz & Al Shaw, Trump Law1er Coryfirms Pruident Can Pull Monel,t From His

ll
 32. The defendant's son, Eric Trump (who is also an advisor to the defendant's trust),

initially indicated that he would not communicate with his father concerning his business

interests. Eric Trump has now acknowledged, however, that he will provide business updates to

the President on at least a quarterly basis.l5

g3, The defendant has neither sought nor received "Consent of the Congress" with

respect to his receipt of presents or emoluments from foreign government officials, entities, or

instrumentalities.

The District of Colurnbia's Trurnp International Hotel

3+. The Trump International Hotel Washington, D.C. is locatecl on Pennsylvania

Avenue, N.W., just blocks from the White House. The defendant owns ancl controls this hotel

through various entities.

35. The defenclant, through entities he owns, receives payments macle to the Trump

International Hotel by guests who stay in hotel rooms and patrons who use the hotel venues or

other goods or services in the hotel.

36. The restaurant BLT Prime is located in the Trump International Hotel. The

defendant, through various business entities, owns the restaurant, licenses the name from BLT

Prime, and pays BLT Prime to operate the restaurant.16

37, Since the election, the Trump International Hotel has specifically marketed itself

to the diplomatic community. On one occasion, barely a week after the election, it held an event

Businesses Whetzeuer He Wants, ProPublica (Apr. 4, 2017), http://bit.lyl2olOMlC'

15 Jennifer Calfas, Eric Trump SaTs He'll Giae the Pruident fuarter Updates on Business
Erupire, Fortune (Mar.24,2017),http:/ /1or.tnl2n2MRXa; Maggie Haberman & Glenn Thrush,
Trum Reaches Beltond West Wingflr Counsel, N.Y. Times (Apr. 22, 2017),http / /nyti,ms/2rsFqvk.
16 Jessica Sidman, How Donald Trump Lost His DC Restauranls, Washingtonian (Oct.
23, 20 | 6), http: / /bit.ly / 2htY zq9.

T2
where it pitched the hotel to about 100 foreign diplomats,lz The hotel also hired a "director of

diplomatic sales" to facilitate business with foreign states and their diplomats and agents, luring

the director away from a competing hotel in Washington.rg

38. In addition, the defendant has repeatedly appeared at the hotel since his election,

adding further media attention to the property and raising its public pro{ile. Several figures in his

administration, including Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Small Business Administration

Administrator Linda McMahon, have also lived or continue to live in the hotel.le

39. Diplomats and their agents have voiced their intent to stay at (or holcl events at)

the Trump International Hotel. "Believe me, all the clelegations will go there," one "Miclclle

Eastern diplomat" told the Washington Post about the hotel,2o An "Asian diplomat" agreed: "Why

wouldn't I stay at his hotel blocks from the White House, so I can tell the new president, 'I love

your new hotell' Isn't it rucle to come to his city and say, 'I am staying at your competitor?"'21

40. These statements have become reality. The Embassy of Kuwait, a foreign state,

held its National Day celebration at the Trump International Hotel on February 22, 2017.22

Upon information and belief, Kuwait paid for the venue, food, and other services providecl in

t7 Jonathan O'Connell & MaryJordan, Forforeign diploma, Trum hotel is lace to be,
Wash. Post (Nov. lB, 2016), http:/ /wapo.st/2quklgh.
IB Id.
re Julie Bykowicz, Trump Hotel Ma2 be Political Capital of the Nation's Capital, Associated
Press (Mar. 5, 20 I 7), http: / / apne,ws/ 2n2Rxfs.
20 Id.
2t Id.
22 Jonathan O'Connell, Kuwaiti Embass2 is latest to book Trump D.C, hotel, but ambassador
sa2s hefelt ho ressure', Wash. Post (Dec. 20,2016), http://wapo.st/2pMtw21;Jackie Northam,
Kuwait Celebration At Tnrmp Hotel Raises Conflict of Interut fuustions, NPR (Feb. 25, 2017),
http:/ /n.pr/2lavPoB.

l3
connection with the celebration. The cost has been estimated at $40,000 to $60,000.23 Before the

election, a "save the date" reservation had been made with the Four Seasons hotel, where the

event had previously been held.2a According to one report, the Embassy of Kuwait moved the

event under pressure from the Trump Organization (though Kuwait's ambassador to the United

States denied being pressured).2s As a result, the Trump International Hotel or its controlling

entities have received one or more payments from Kuwait after l2:01 pm onJanuary 20,2017 .

+L Between January 23 and 26, 2017 and cluring February 2017, the Kingdom of

Saudi Arabia, a foreign state, spent thousands of clollars on rooms, catering, and parking at the

Trump International Hotel. In a Foreign Agents Registration Act report filed with the

Department of Justice, an agent representing the Royal Embassy of the Kingdom of Saucli

Arabia reported paying the hotel $190,272 for lodging, fi78,204 for catering, and $1,568 for

parking between October 1,2016 and March 31,2017, using money received from Saudi

Arabia.26 Some of the payments were made after the defendant's inauguration as President.2T

Upon information and belief, Saudi Arabia paid at least $250 per night for each of the rooms it

rented through its agent between January 23 and26,2017,28 and paid the hotel for meals and

23 Julia Harte, Kuwait could ltay u to 860,000 for art2 at Trum Hotel in Washington,
Reuters (Feb. 2 7, 20 | 7 ), http : / / reut.rs / 2oF ztKa.
2+ Jackie Northam, Kuwait Celebration At Trump Hotel Raises Coffict of Interest fuestions.

25 Judd Legum & Kira Lerner, Under political pressure, Kuwait cancels mqjor euents at Four
Seasons, switches to Trum's D.C. hotel, ThinkProgress (Dec. 19, 2016), http://bit.lyl2rssRzM.
26 MSLGROUP Americas Inc. d/l/a Qorvis MSLGROUP, Supplemental
Statement Pursuant to the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended, for six month
period ending 3/31/2017, filed }l4.ay 31, 20l7,http:/ /bit.lyl2rAQjgE; Chuck Ross, Saudis Spent
#270K At Trum Hotel In Inbb2ing Camaign Against 9/l I Bill, Daily Caller ([une +, 2017),
http : / / bitJyl 2 sSKB 7F.
27 Byron Tau & Rebecca Ballhaus, Trump Hotel Receiued fi270,000 From Lobbying
Camaign Tied to Saudis, Wall StreetJournal flune 6, 2017), ht://on,wsj.com/2s42HH9.
28 Isaac Arnsclorf, Saudis foot tab at Trum hotel, POLITICO (Feb. 9, 2017),

t4
other services provided in connection with the stay. Saudi Arabia paid for individuals to have

dinner at the hotel on January 23 and both breakfast and dinner on January 24.2e Upon

information and belief, at least one of the meals was provided by BLT Prime. Upon information

and belief, Saudi Arabia paid the hotel through its agent for similar expenses associated with a

visit in mid-February,3o As a result, the Trump International Hotel or its controlling entities have

received one or more payments from Saudi Arabia, through its agent, after l2:01 pm onJanuary

20,20t7 .

42. On or about April 6, 2017, Kaha Imnadze, the Ambassaclor and Permanent

Representative of Georgia to the United Nations, stayecl at the Trump International Hotel and

then tweeted his compliments about the hotel.3l Upon information and belief, the government of

Georgia, a foreign state, paid the hotel for his room and other services providecl in connection

with his stay. As a result, the Trump International Hotel or its controlling entities have received

one or more payments from Georgia after l2:01 pm onJanuary 20,2017.

+3. On information and belief, after 12:01 pm onJanuary 20,2017, the Trump
International Hotel or its controlling entities have received anc will continue to receive payments

from other foreign states, instrumentalities of foreign states, or foreign ofcials.

4+. OnJanuary 20,2017, Trump Old Post Office LLC, the entity leasing the building

in which the Trump International Hotel is located and in which the defendant has a beneficial

http : / /poli ti. co / 2kZa6mS.

2e Operations Order from Jason E. Johns, President of NMLB Veterans Advocacy
Group, to Fly-In Veterans regarding theJustice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act flan. 23-26,
20 | 7), http : / /bit.lyl 2 oiBdlp.
30 Ross, ,sazdes Sent fi270KAt Trum Hotel In Lob\'ing CamaignAgainst 9/11 Bill.
3r Kaha Imnadze (@kahaimnadze), Twitter (r. 6, 2017, B:49 AM),
hnp: / /bit.lyl2oiFBFcl.

l5
interest, amended its governing agreement to provide that, during the defendant's presidency,

the company will not make any distributions of profts to any entity in which the defendant has a

beneficial interest and will credit these undistributed profits to n unrecovered capital

contribution account held for the benefit of the designated entities that defendant controls. This

amendment is immaterial to whether the defendant has violated the Foreign Emoluments

Clause. The defendant remains owner of approximately 77.5o/o of the Trump Old Post Office

LLC (the remaining shares are owned by three of his children), ancl thereby benefits from any

amounts deposited into the unrecovered capital contribution account. He further may receive

clistribution from those amour-tts once he is no longer in oflice.

+5. Additionally, by providing that the defendant's contributions will be used by

Trump OIcl Post Office LLC for business purposes, the ame nclment increasecl the value of one of

his assets.

+6. Prior to taking ofTice, President Trump's attorney promised that all profits earned

from foreign governments would be donated to the U.S. Treasury. The Trump Organization

later admitted, however, that it was not tracking all payments that it received from foreign

governments, and that it plans only to estimate, rather than calculate, such payments.32

New Yorkos Trurnp Tower

47. Trump Tower is a mixed-use skyscraper on Fifth Avenue in New York City.

Through the use of various entities, the defendant owns and controls Trump Tower and, through

entities he owns, receives payments made to Trump Tower by tenants.

32 Ari Melber, et al., Trum Failing to Track Foreign Cash at His Hotels, NBC News (May
24, 20 | 7 ), http : / / nbcnews, to / 2q1N zv3x.

l6
 +8. One of the largest tenants of Trump Tower is the Industrial and Commercial

Bank of China ('ICBC'), which is a Chinese majoriry-state-owned enterprise,33 As such, ICBC is

an instrumentality of a foreign state.

+9. After l2:01 pm onJanuary 20, 2017, Trump Tower or its controlling entities have

received one or more payments from ICBC under its lease. Trump Tower or its controlling

entities will continue to receive regular payments from ICBC under its lease agreement,

50, The defendant has repeatedly referenced ICBC's Trump Tower lease in

discussing his views of U.S.-China relations. During his presidential campaign inJune 2015, for

instance, the defendant stated: "I love Chinal The biggest bank in the world is from China. You

know where their United States headquarters is located? In this building, in Trump Tower."34

Similarly, in March 2016, when asked about China's territorial claims in the South China Sea,

the defendant tolcl the Washington Post,"I do deals with them all the time. The largest bank in the

world, 400 million customers, is a tenant of mine in New York, in Manhattan."35

51. The term of ICBC's Trump Tower lease runs until October 2019, before the end

of the defendant's term. As a result, any negotiations for a renewal or extension of the lease will

occur while he is serving as President.36

52. Trump Grill is a restaurant located inside Trump Tower that the defendant owns

through various business entities. Upon information and belief, tenants of Trump Tower,

including oflcials of China and other countries, have dined at Trump Grill as a result of their

33 Caleb Melby, et al., I[hen Chinese Bank's Trum Lease Endq Potential Conflict Begins,
Bloomberg (Nov. 28, 20 I 6), https: / /blo om,bg/ 2oQ07 -I 4.
34 Id.
35 Id.
36 Id.

t7
tenancy in the Tower and the foreign states themselves may host events there. Accordingly,

foreign states or their instrumentalities likely have paid or will pay for services at Trump Grill.

The defendant has and will continue to receive payments from various foreign states through

Trump Grill.

NewYorkts Trurnp World Tower

53. Trump World Tower is a skyscraper on United Nations Plazain New York City,

corrlaining condominium units. Through the use of various entities, the defendant manages and

controls Trump World Tower and, through entities he owns, receives payments made by

residents of the Trump World Tower for common charges ancl handles rental transactions

involving condominium units.

5+. In 2001, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia paid $4.5 million to purchase a floor of

Trump World Tower.37 The annual common charges for building amenities for the floor totaled

$85,585 at the time . As of 2003, the most recent year for which information is publicly available,

the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia paid monthly common charges of about $7,398-or $BB,7Bl per

year. The floor currently belongs to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for use by the Saucli Mission

to the United Nations, which upon information.and belief continues to pay common charges to

the defendant.3s

37 Stephen R. Brown, Donald Trump made mil.lions from Saudi Arabin, but trashes Hillary
Clinton for Saudi donations to Clinton Foundation, N.Y. Daily News (Sept, +, 2016),
http : / / nydn. us / 2bNEAq2.
38 Id.

IB
 55. In 2015, the defendant said about Saudi Arabia: "I get along great with all of

them. They buy apartments from me." He further noted: "They spend $40 million, $50 million'

Am I supposed to dislike them? I like them very much."3e

56. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a foreign state, and the Saudi Mission to the

United Nations is an instrumentality of a foreign state.

57. In 2002, the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations, an

instrumentality of a foreign state, paid $5.1 million to purchase two units in Trump World Tower

from the defendant.ao As of 2003, the most recent year for which information is publicly

available, the Mission paid monthly common charges of approximately $3,639-or $43,670 per

year. The units continue to belong to the Mission, which upgn information ancl belief continues

to pay common charges to the defendant.

58. In 2009, the Permanent Mission of Afghanistan to the United Nations, an

instrumentality of a foreign state, paid $4.235 million to purchase a unit in Trump World

Tower.4l As of 2003, the most recent year for which information is publicly available, the

common monthly charges for the unit purchased by the Mission were approximately $2,090 per

month-or $25,085 per year. The unit continues to belong to the Mission, which upon
information and belief continues to pay common charges to the defendant.

59. In 200+, the Permanent Mission of tat to the United Nations, an

instrumentality of a foreign state, paid $1,995,000 to purchase a unit in Trump World Tower,

3e Id.
40 N.Y.C. Dep't of Finance, OfIce of the City Registrar, Condo, Unit Deed: 845
U.N. Ltd. P'ship To The Permanent Mission of India to the U.N. (Dec. 23, 2002),
http : / /on.nyc. gov/ 2pbBObx.
4t Max Abelson, Afghanistan BtEs 84.2 M, Trum Condo (with 'Peac{ulness and Views'),
Observer (Sept. I 1, 2009), http://bit.ly/ZoQ 4n3.

l9
and in 2012, it paid $8.375 million to purchase two additional units in Trump World Tower. As

of 2003, the most recent year for which information is publicly available, the common monthly

charges for the units purchased by the Mission were a total of approximately $5,660 per

month-or $67,920 per year. The units continue to belong to the Mission, which upon

information and belief still pays common charges to the defendant,

60. The defendant, through entities he owns, receives payments macle to Trump

Worlcl Tower by tenants and owners of units in the building through their payment of common

charges and other fees. On information ancl belief,, these payments include management ancl

other fees paid to the building's management company, an entity owned by the clefendant.

61, Trump World Tower or its controlling entities will continue to receive regular

common charge payments from Saudi Arabia, India, Afghanistan, and tar, and those

payments will flow to the defendant,

62, The World Bar is a bar located in Trump World Tower.

63. Tenants of the Trump World Tower, including officials from Saudi Arabia, India,

Afghanistan, and Q,atar have patronized (or will patronize) the World Bar. Further, foreign states

or agents or instrumentalities of these or other foreign states have hosted and will host events at

the World Bar due to its location near the United Nations. By reason of his financial stake in

Trump World Tower, the defendant will either receive payments from foreign states made to the

World Bar, or the revenue that the World Bar receives, including from foreign states, affects the

amount of rent that the defendant is able to charge the World Bar.

Chinese tradernarks

6+. The defendant began to seek trademark protection in China for the use of his

name in connection with building construction services in 2006. His application was rejected by

the Trademark Office, and he subsequently lost his appeals to the Trademark Review and

20
Adjudication Board, the Beijing Intermediate People's Court, and the Beijing High People's

Court.a2 The defendant suffered his most recent court defeat in May 2015, the month before he

declared his candidacy for President.

65. Three weeks after his election, on December 2,2016, the defendant spoke directly

with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.a3 That conversation broke longstanding protocol and

suggested that the defendant might end the "One China" policy that the Unitecl States had

obscrved for decades. The clefendant further indicated before taking ofTrce that he might end the

One China policy unless some benefit were received in exchange.aa

66. On February 9,2017, however, the defendant spoke with Chinese President Xi

Jinping and pledged to honor the One China policy.as Five days later, on February L4, 2017,

China reversed its prior course and gave the defenclant trademark protection.

67. Chinese law prohibits awarding trademarks that are "the same as or similar to the

name of leaders of national, regional, or international political organzatons."46

68. Even though China had denied the defendant trademark protection for more than

ten years, including in a ruling from an appellate court, and despite Chinese law barring the use

of foreign leaders' names as trademarks, China reversed course and decided to grant the

defendant the trademark he had sought and valued. But China did so only after he had been

42 Erika Kinetz, With Trum's win in China, will Trurn toilets get flusdl Associated
Press (Feb. | +, 20 | 7 ), http: / / apne.ws / 2mfcKgN.
+3 Jordan Fabian & Neetzan Zimmerman, Trum nakes historlt with phone call to Taiwan
le ader,
-he Hill (D ec. 2, 20 | 6), http : / /bit.lyl 2prWnYu.
4+ Jordan Fabian & Evelyn Rupert, Trum romisu Chinese resident he'll honor 'one China'
policy, The Hill
(Feb. 9, 2017), http://bit.ly/2pbgZUW; Laurel Raymond & Judd Legum,
Trum's trademark tests Chinese law,Think Progress (Feb, lB, 2017),http:/ /l:illy/2pXHZ'2.
+s Fabian & Rupert, Trump promises Chinue president he'll honor 'one China'policy,
46 Raymoncl & Legum, Trum's trademark tes Chinese law.

2I
elected President, questioned the One China policy, was sworn in, and then re-affirmed the One

China policy.

69. The trademarks have considerable value because they gtu. the Trump

Organization the sole right to profit from the Trump brand in China. China's granting of these

trademarks constitutes a present or emolument provided to the defendant.

70. When asked why the defendant changed his position on the One China policy,

ancl whether he hacl received something in exchange from China, White House Press Secretary

Sean Spicer answered: "The President always gets something," but did not elaborate.4T

International versions and distribution of rrThe Apprenticett and its spinoffs

7 |. The defendant earns royalties and other payments from the clistribution in other

countries of the television program "The Apprentice" ancl its spinof (including "The Celebrity

Apprentice" and "The New Celebrity Apprentice," for which he is still an executive proclucer),

and also from international versions of the programs produced in other countries. In some

instances, these payments originate from foreign governments or their agents or instrumentalities.

For instance, the defendant is paid for a version of the program "The Apprentice" that airs in the

United Kingdom,as The network that broadcasts "The Apprentice" and spinoff shows in the

United Kingdom is an instrumentality of a foreign state.

72. After l2:01 pm onJanuary 20,2017, the defendant has received and will continue

to receive payments from foreign states via their payments for "The Apprentice" or its spinofs

41 Madeline Conway, Spicer on Trump's 'One China' agreunent: 'The resident always ge
s omething', POLITIC O (Feb, 2 7, 20 1 7 ), http : / /poli ti.co / 2prZpl7 .
48 Madeline Berg, Here's How Much Donald Trum Will Eam From Producing'CelebriEt
Apprentice', Forbes (Dec. I 3, 20 l6), ht://bit.lyl2pY0S9h.

22
and international versions. Such payments constitute presents or emoluments that the defendant

has accepted and will accept from a foreign state.

Other foreign connectionsr properties, and businesses

73. (Inted Arb Enrtes. The defendant's company is engaged in several real-

estate projects in the United Arab Emirates, including Dubai's Trump International Golf Club,

which opened on February lB, 2017.4e Upon information and belief, the defendant, through

various business entities, has a branding-and-management contract with the properff, and

thereby possesses a lnancial interest in the Trump International Golf Club.

7+. All services for the golf club, including electricity, water) ancl roads, "come at the

discretion of the government," ancl the "club's bar will neecl government approvals to serve

alcohol, not to mention other regulatory issues."50

75. The golf club and other projects cannot be built or operated without permits,

utility, ancl other services and approvals, These discretionary approvals accorclingly confer value

on the defendant, through his financial stake in the company receiving them, in violation of the

Foreign Emoluments Clause.

76. Ind.ones.. The defendant's company is engaged in at least two real-estate

projects in Indonesia, including redeveloping a resort in Bali.sl Upon information and belief, the

4e Sudarsan Raghavan, Trum's sons get red caret treatrnent at Dubai golf club oening,
Wash. Post (Feb. lB, 2017), http:/ /wapo.st/2pY20tl.
s0 Jon Gambrell, Golf Club Shows Pifolls of His Presidenc2, Associated Press ([an. 3,
20 | 7 ), http : / / apne.ws / 2j OgOVk.
5r lanJarrett, Pan Pacffic makes wE for Trum in BaLi, Travel Weekly (Feb. 17 , 2017),
http://bit.lyl2nU3ANN; Richard C. Paddock & Eric Lipton, Trum's Indonesia Projx, Still
Mouing Ahead, Create Potential Coqflicts, N.Y. Times (Dec. 31, 2016), http://nyti.ms/2kKSKlp;
Russ Choma, Tntm's Indonesian Business Partner Brags About His Access, Mother Jones (Feb, 10,
20 | 7), http: / /bit.lyl 2kuj qMC.

23
defendant, through various business entities, has a licensing-and-management agreement with

these projects, through which he possesses a financial interest in them.

77. Completing the projects required or will require permits and approvals from the

Indonesian government. The defendant will receive value from these discretionary permits and

approvals through his financial stake in the company receiving them, in violation of the Foreign

Emoluments Clause.

78. Other, The clefendant also owns) operates, and licenses numerous other

businesses throughout the United States and abroad, including other hotels, other properties for

sale or lease, and golf courses ancl clubs.52 The clefendant, through his financial stake in the

company or companies receiving them, clerives value from the foreign permits and approvals

associated with the owning and operation of those businesses in violation of the Foreign

Emoluments Clause. In addition) revenues from foreign states'patronage of his hotels, golf clubs,

and other businesses may flow to the defendant. After 12:01 pm on January 20,2017, the

defendant, through at least one of his various businesses, properties, and other entities has

received one or more presents or emoluments from foreign states and will continue to do so.

B. The defendantts Dornestic Ernolurnents Clause violations

79. As alleged above, the defendant owns and controls hundreds of businesses

throughout the country, including hotels and other properties. The defendant personally benefts

from the business dealings of these entities and agreements associated with them, and is and will

be enriched by their business with state governments or federal agencies within the scope of the

Domestic Emoluments Clause.

52 U.S, Ofice of Gov't Ethics, DonaldJ. Trump, 2016 Executive Branch Personnel
Public Financial Disclosure Report (May 16, 2016), http://bit.lyl2gBUwIV.

2+
 The District of Colurnbats Trurnp International Hotel

80. On August 5, 2013, Trump Old Post Ofice LLC, a business entity owned

primarily by the defendant, signed a 60-year lease with the General Services Administration

("GSA")-an independent agency of the United States, whose administrator is appointed by the

President-to open a hotel in the Old Post Office Building in the District of Columbia.

81, More than 76% of Trump OId Post Office LLC is owned by DJT Holdings LLC,

which is in turn owned almost entirelyby the DonaldJ. Trump Revocable Trust, of which the

defendant is the sole beneficiary. The Trump International Hotel Washington, D.C. is located at

this site. The defendant has not divested his interest in the lease since becoming Presiclent,

82. Section 37.19 of the Old Post Ofce lease states: "No... elected official of the

Government of the United States . . . shall be admitted to any share or part of this Lease, or to

any benefit that may arise therefrom." A violation of Section 37.19 is a non-monetary breach

ancl a default unless it is remedied within 30 days after notice from the GSA. Accorclingly, the

defendant has been in breach of the lease with the GSA since 12:01 pm onJanuary 20,2017,

when he became President.

83. Before the defendant's inauguration, the GSA's Deputy Commissioner indicated

to Representatives Blijah Cummings, Peter DeFazio, Gerald Connolly, and Andr Carson that

the defendant would be in violation of the lease unless he "fully divests himself of all financial

interests in the lease" for the Trump International Hotel, which he has not done. Short after

the inauguration, Norman Dong, a GSA official appointed by former President Obama, became

acting administrator. But less than a day later, the defendant replaced Mr. Dong with Tim

Horne, who had coordinated the GSA's transition with the defendant's campaign,53

53 Isaac Arnsdorf, Trum Pick lader r Federal Agenq,t Ouerseeing His D.C. Hotel,

2s
 B+. Several weeks later, on March 16, 20l7,the defendant released a proposed 2018

budget increasing GSA's funding, while cutting all (or nearly all) other non-defense-related

agencies' budgets.5a One week after that, on March 23, the GSA issued a letter stating that-
contrary to the lease's plain terms-Trump Old Post Ofice LLC "is in full compliance with

Section 37.19 fof the lease] and, accordingly, the lease is valid and in full force and eflect."ss A

significant portion of the letter reviews the purported financial benefits of the lease to the GSA

ancl taxpayers-even though those benefits are immaterial to the question of breach.

85. Attached to the March 23, 2017 letter was an amenclment to the agreement

governing the business of Trump OId Post Office LLC. This amendment is the basis of the

GSA's position that the tenant is in compliance with the lease, but the letter does not explain how

the amenclment brings the tenant into compliance. In fact, as described above, the amenclment

does not prevent the defendant from receiving "any benefit" from the lease, ancl Trump Old Post

Office LLC remains in breach of the lease .

86. In forbearing from enforcing the Old Post Office lease's default and termination

procedures, despite the tenant's breach of its terms, and in cooperating with the tenant in

attempting to create the appearance of compliance with the lease, the federal government has

given the defendant an emolument in violation of the Domestic Emoluments Clause.

87. Additionally, the defendant, through entities he owns, is seeking a $32 million

historic-preservation tax credit for the Trump International Hotel. Approval of this credit is at

POLITIC O (J an. 26, 20 I 7 ), ht: / /politi. co / 2psgMflJ,

5+ Office of Mgmt. & Budget, Exec. Office of the President, America First, A Budget
Blueprint to Make America Great Again (20 I 7), ht:/ /bit.ly / 2nvjrBO .

55 Lefier from Kevin M. Terry, Contracting Oficer, United States Gen. Servs.
Aclmin,, to Donald J. Trump, Jr. (Mar. 23, 20 17), htp / / bit.lyl ZnhKfaB.

26
the discretion of the National Park Service, an instrumentality of the federal government now

under the defendant's authority.56 If approved, the tax credit would ofet approximately 20o/o of

the cost of rehabilitating the building in which the Trump International Hotel is operating.

88. On November 14, 2016, the defendant received approval from the National Park

Service for the second phase of the three-step-approval process. If fnal approval is granted, it

may constitute an emolument, in violation of the Domestic Emoluments Clause .

Mar-a-Lago Club

89. The Mar-a-Lago Club is a private club and estate located in Palm Beach, Florida.

It is comprised of 20 acres of land, with a main mansion of over 100 rooms, alongwith a beach

club, pools, tennis courts, and a 20,000 square foot ballroom for private events. The estate itself

was purchased by the clefendant in 1985. A decade later, in 1995, the defendant opened the club

as a hotel and resort for dues-paying members of the public. It is owned by the clefenclant clirectly

or owned by entities that he directly controls.

90. The defendant, through entities he owns, receives payments made to the Mar-a-

Lago Club by members and guests who join or visit the club, or rent space there , or pay for other

goods or services at the club.

9l. Membership in the Mar-a-Lago Club requires payment of an initiation fee of

$200,000, plus tax, as well as $14,000 ayear in annual dues. This fee was doubled following the

defendant's election as President-an increase from $100,000 to $200,000.si Since his election,

56
Eric Levitz, Trump Won the Presidenclt, Then Approual on a Tax Subsi for His Hotel
New York Mag. (Nov. 30, 2016), http:/ /nyrn.agl2oFFlo9.
57 Robert Frank, Mar-a-Lago Membersh Fee Doubles to ff200,000, CNBC San, 25,
20 1, 7 ), http : / / cnb. cx / 2kjIc2j.

27
the defendant has also attempted to capitalize on his ofice by advertising his private property to

foreign governments and individuals.

92. The State Department and at least two U,S. Embassies-those located in the

United Kingdom and Albania-have promoted the Mar-a-Lago estate and club on their

respective websites by posting a 400-word blog post, originally written by Leigh Hartman for a

State Department-managed website , "Share America," on April +,2017 .58

93. The State Department and embassies' actions have served to promote Mar-a-

Lago as the defendant's "Floricla estate" and claimed that it "has become well known as the

presiclent frequently travels there to work or host foreign leaclers."5e

94. The State Department is an executive department within the federal government

under the defendant's authoriry.

95. ShareAmerica, the blog for which the post was originally written, is specifically

directed towards foreign individuals and governments.60

96. This post advertising Mar-a-Lago has since been removed from the websites of

the State Department and the embassies, but not before substantive, world-wide advertising of

the defendant's private property, using government resources, had occurred.

97. The defendant has used his ofTcial position as President to promote his Mar-a-

Lago property. He has designated Mar-a-Lago as the "Winter White House," and also refers to it

58 Darren Samuelsohn, State Deartment, U.S. Embassies Promoting Trum's Mar-a-Lago,

POLITIC O (Apr. 24, 20 | 7 ), http : / /politi. co / 2pe C 7Jb.
5e Mar-a-Ingo: The utinter Wite House, http://bit.lyl2paWtRK log post
subsequently removed; former blog post shown at Dan Merica, State Deartrnent remlaes Mar-a-Lago
b log o st, CNN (Apr. 25, 20 | 7 ), http: / / cnn. itl ZpdRu 2x).

t0 Abou,t Us, ShareAmerica,https:/ / share.america.gov/about-us/ (last visitedJune 9,

20t7).

28
as the "southern White House."61 Since taking office, he has visited Mar-a-Lago on at least seven

occasions, and has met with a number of foreign leaders there, including Japanese Prime
Minister Shinzo Abe and the President of the People's Republic of China, XiJinping.62

98. Upon information and belief, federal, state, and local governments) or their

instrumentalities, have made and will continue to make payments for the use of facilities owned

or operated by the defendant for a variety of functions. The defendant will receive a portion of

those payments, which constitute emoluments prohibitecl by the Domestic Emoluments Clause.

99. Although the exact extent of these emoluments is not currently known, examples

of current or potential violations include "public pension funds in at least seven U,S. states"-but

not the State of Marylancl or the District of Columbia-that "have invested millions of dollars in

an investment fund that owns a New York hotel and pays one of Presiclent Donald Trump's

companies to run it, according to a Reuters review of public records."63 And the defendant has

6l See, e,g., Briefingby Press Secretary Sean Spicer (Feb. 2,2017) ("Luckily, for
Press
those of you who are going to be joining the President down to Florida this weekend, you'll get
some time to get a glimpse of summer at the 'Winter White House' in Mar-a-Lago."),
http://bit.ly/2k5Q3lZ; Remarks by President Trump in Listening Session with the National
Association of Manufacturers (Mar. 31, 2017) ("The President: . . . As you know the President of
China is coming to Florida, We're having a meetingbig meeting-at Mar-a-Lago. We call it
the Southern White House, which it actually is. It was originally built as the Southern White
House, a lot of people don't know."), http:/ /bitJy/2rUH1ZI.
62 Background Briefing by Senior Administration Oficials on the Visit of
,Se
President Xi Jinping of the People's Republic of China (Apr. +, 2017) ("SENIOR
ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: . . . I'm certain it was President Trump's invitation that they
meet outside of Washington, D.C.-. . . you know, you've heard people refer to it as the 'winter
White House.' It's a place where he feels comfortable and at home, and where he can break the
ice with Xi Jinping without the formality, really, of a Washington meet-up."),
http : / /bit.ly / 2nY Qy26.
t3 Julia Harte , Exclusiae: A New Tork hotel deal shows how some ublic ension funds he to

enrich Trum, Reuters (Apr. 26, 2017),http:/ /reut rs/2oIONBp.

29
received (or will likely receive) a host of other potential emoluments from federal, state, andlor

Iocal governments.

C. Post-inauguration prerniurn for the defendantts goods and services

100. Since the defendant's inauguration as President, goods and services sold by his

various Trump businesses have sold at a premium. The defendant's high office gives the Trump

brand greater prominence and exposure. Moreover, these goods and services provide (or have

the potential to provide) a unique benefit: access to, influence on, and the goodwill of the

President of the United States.

101. Thus, for example, the starting rate for "guest rooms" at the defendant's Old Post

Office hotel increased to $500 on most nights, up hundreds of dollars from when the hotel first

opened shortly before the defendant's election.6a

102. Further, as discussed earlier, the initiation fee for membership at defendant's Mar-

a-Lago resort doubled from $100,000 to $200,000 shortly after he was elected.65

D. The plaintiffs' interests in this litigation

103. The plaintiffs'interests in this litigation are substantial. They are harmed by the

defendant's constitutional violations in at least two distinct ways. First, they have suffered (and

will continue to sufler) harm to their sovereign andlor quasi-sovereign interests, including

Maryland's interest in preserving its rightful status within our federal system; the plaintifs'

interest in not being subjected to unfair competition by virtue of ongoing violations of

constitutional provisions designed to guard against corruption and to protect interests distinct to

the states themselves; the plaintifns' interest in protecting their economies and their residents from

6+ The Associated Press, Tntmp Hotel Ma2 Be Political Caital of Nation's Caital,
Fortune (Mar. 5, 20 1 7), htrp: / / for.tn / 2 rsCsXI.
65 Robert Frank, Mar-a-Lago membershipfee doubles to #200,000.

30
economic harm; and Maryland's interest in preserving its tax revenue. Second, the plaintiffs have

suffered (and will continue to suffer) proprietary and other financial harms as a result of the

defendant's ongoing constitutional violations. These injuries can be redressed by a declaration

that the defendant is in violation of the Emoluments Clauses and an injunction preventing his

continued violation of them.

Sovereign and quasi-sovereign injuries to the plaintiffs

104. Mryland's soaeregn nterest n enforcng the ternts on uhch t

agreed to enter the Union Before adopting the federal Constitution, Maryland and its sister

states were truly independent sovereigns. Many of these states-including Maryland-had

incorporated protections against public corruption into their own legal codes and constitutions,

with specific prohibitions on public officials accepting payments from federal, state, or foreign

governments. The Maryland Declaration of Rights, adopted August 14,1776, provides that "all

persons invested with the legislative or executive powers of government are the trustees of the

public," and contains a precursor to the U.S. Constitution's Emoluments Clauses.66 This

precursor combines the concerns of the two clauses into a single prohibition: "That no person

ought to hold, at the same time, more than one ofTice of profit, nor ought any person, in public

trust, to receive any present from any foreign prince or state, or from the United States, or any of

them, without the approbation of this State."67 The Maryland Constitution of 1776 further
provided for banishment "forever" as a potential punishment for a governor sharing "directly or

66 Md. Declaration of Rights of 1776, art,4 (A."S. l+, 1776)

67 Id., art.32.

3l
indirectly" in the profits of another oflce, and also prohibited the governor from receiving part of

the profts of supplying the army and navy.68

105. Maryland's historical prohibition against foreign and domestic emoluments is

consistent with the constitutions adopted by the other colonies at the time. The Pennsylvania

Constitution of 1776, which Benjamin Franklin helped draft, made clear "[t]hat government is,

or ought to be, instituted for the common benefit, protection ancl security of the people, nation or

cornmunity; ancl not for the particular emolument or aclvantage of any single man, family, or sett

of men, who are apart only of that community."6e The South Carolina Constitution of 1776,70

and the Massachusetts Constitution of l7B0,7l contained similar prohibitions against corruption

of public oficials.

106. The prohibitions contained in the Domestic and Foreign Emoluments Clauses

were thus material inducements to the states entering the union. As a state sovereign, Marylancl

retains its power to bring suit to enforce those prohibitions today.

107. The pl.ntffs' gouernntentl interest n not beng cornpelled to

cotttpete .tnproperly for nfluence or faaor. As explained above, the Domestic

68 Md. Const. of 1776, arts. 33 and 53.

6e Const. of Pa., Declaration of the Rights of the Inhabitants of the Commonwealth
or State of Pennsylvania, art. V; see also id. at $ 36 ("As every freeman to preserve his
independence, (if without a sufficient estate) ought to have some profession, calling, trade or
farm, whereby he may honestly subsist, there can be no necessity for, nor use in establishing
offices of profit, the usual eflects of which are dependence and servility unbe coming freemen, in
the possessors and expectants; faction, contention, corruption, and disorder among the people.
But if any man is called into public service; to the prejudice of his-private affairs, he has a right to
a reasonable compensation: And whenever an office, through increase of fees or otherwise,
becomes so profitable as to occasion many to apply for it, the profits ought to be lessened by the
legislature.").
70 S.C, Const. of 1776, art. X.
7l Mass. Const., ch. II, art. XIIL

32
Emoluments Clause in particular reflects the Framers' deep concern that one or more of the

states (or the federal government) might seek to buy off the President so that he would exercise

power to their advantage and to the detriment of other states, thereby disrupting the balance of

power in the federalist system. Thus, the Domestic Emoluments Clause aims to prevent "the

United States, or any of them," from feeling compelled (or being compelled) to confer private

financial benefits on the President in order to compete for influence and favor.

l0B. The Disuict ancl Marylancl each have a governmental interest in the enforcement

of their respective laws regarding taxation, environmental protection, zoning, ancl land use as

they relate to real property that the defendant or the "Trump Organization" may own or seek to

acquire. The defendant and his affiliated enterprises have a large ancl expanding portfolio of real-

estate holdings, including a hotel in the District, and the defendant's Trump International

Realty, otherwise known as T International Realty LLC, is registered to conduct business in

Maryland.72

109. Real-estate acquisition, ownership, and development implicate a range of legal

requirements under the laws of the District ancl Maryland, including tax laws that generate

revenue for the District, Maryland, and their instrumentalities. The defendant has boasted that

he has achieved success in real-estate acquisition and development by using his financial clout

and political connections to extract from governments maximum concessions, exemptions,

waivers, and variances with respect to taxes and other requirements imposed by law.73

72 Md. State Dep't of Assessments and Taxation, Md, Business Express, Registration
for Trump Inte rnational Re alty, http : / / l:it,ly / 2 qXZW pQ"
73 Geraldine Baum, Tom Hamburger & Michael J. Mishak, Trum ltas thriued uith
L.A. Times (May 11, 2011),http:/ /lat.ms/lUGMtcS;Jillian Kay Melchior,
gouemment's generosiE,
Donald Trum Has Mastered the Art of the Tax Break, National Review (Aug. 19, 2015) ("Trump has
long sought subsidies, tax breaks, and other preferential treatment from the government."),

.1.)
Indications to date suggest that this longstanding practice of the Trump Organization did not

cease upon the defendant's election to the Presidency; rather, there is evidence that the

defendant's ascendancy to the highest ofice in the land has enhanced his organization's ability to

win concessions from governments with respect to his properties.Ta

110. The defendant's acceptance or receipt of presents and emoluments in violation of

the Constitution presents the District and Marylancl with an intolerable clilemma: either (l) grant

the Organization's requests for concessions, exemptions, waivers, variances, ancl the like and

sufner the consequences, potentially including lost revenue and compromised enforcement of

environmental protection, zoning, ancl land use regulations, or (2) deny such requests and be

placed at a disadvantage vis--vis states and other government entities that have granted or will

agree to such concessions. Bither way, the result is the very type of injury that the Domestic

Emoluments Clause was clesigned to prevent.

II l. Moreover, the District and Maryland, which rank first and fourth, respectively, in

per capita amount of federal government expenditures, are particular susceptible to injury

resulting from budgetary decisions that are subject to the corrupting influence of emoluments.T5

Federal funds make up approximately 25o/o of the District's fiscal year 20lB budget,76 and

Maryland is relying on federal funds for nearly 30% of the State government's budget for fiscal

http : / / bitJyl I rher3Y.

7+
Michael LaForgia & Steve Eder, When That Feisqt Neighbor Becomes the President,N.Y.
Times (May 6, 2017),http:/ /nyti.ms/2qXUxPw.
75 U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Consolidated Federal Funds Reortfor Fiscal Tear 2010 (Sept.
20 1 l) at 23, 32, http://bit.lyl2r6mJRe.
76 Council of the District of Columbia, Committee of the Whole, Reort on Bitt 22-
241, the "Fiscal fear 20lB Federal Portion Budget Request Act of 2017" (May 30, 2017) at 2,
http : / /bit.ly / 2s0x6F z.

34
year 2018.77 Federal government spending accounted for more than42o/o of the District's gross

domestic product and more than 2o/o of Maryland's in fscal year 2014.7 B Both the District and

Maryland are home to headquarters for federal agencies, Civilian federal agencies employ

approximately l7o/o of the workforce in the Districtie and l0% of Maryland's total workforce.B0

Federal agencies annually have spent more than $21 billion for procurement in the District and

more than $26 billion for procurement in Maryland.Bl Given this significance of federal

government spending and operations, and the President's significant role in determining how,

when, and where federal funds are spent, the conflict of interest inherent in the defendant's

receipt of emoluments clirectly and profoundly aflects the District and Maryland.

112. The plaintif seek to protect this distinct interest, ancl thereby vindicate their role

as governments in our constitutional scheme.

113. The plantffs'nterest .n preuentng econonrc njuty to ther resdents

nd. ther econornes. The District is home to 680,000 residents, while the State of Maryland

is home to over 6.I million residents. Residents of both the District and Maryland participate in a

thriving hospitality industry that comprises a substantial part of the plaintifls' economies. For

77 Md. Dept. of Legislative Services, The 90 DE Reort: A Reuiew of the 2017 Legislatiue
Session at A-3, A-28, http://bit.lyl2r6glEs.

78 Pew Charitable Trusts , Issue Brief Federal Spending in the States 2005 to 2014 (Mar. 3,
20 I 6) at 6, http: / /bit.lyl I QIOq43.
7s Office of Personnel Management, Data, Analysis & Documentation: Federal
Employment Reports (Sept. 2015), http:/ /l:it.ly/2qZlllicRE; District of Columbia, Wage and
Salary Employment by Industry and Place of Work (Dec. 2015),http:/ /bit,lyl2raFJhF.
80 John Fritze, Trum's Budget Suges Mqjor Changes in Md., Baltimore Sun (Mar. 16,
20 17), http : / /bsun.md/ 2r6n I Yk.
Br U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Consolidated Federal Funds Reortr Fiscal Tear 2010 (Sept,
20l l) at 37, +8, http://bit.lyl2r6n{Re.

35
example, in 2014, visitors to the District generated approximately $6,81 billion in spendings2 and

drove $3.86 billion in wages for 74,570 employees in the District's hospitality industry.sa In

Maryland, tourists and travelers spent nearly $17 billion in 2015, yielding $5.7 billion in wages

for more than 140,000 employees,B5 including more than 72,000 hospitality industry workers

employed in the two Maryland counties that border the District of Columbia,86 Both the District

and Marylancl regulate competition and transparency in this industry through laws that prohibit

anticompetitive or deceptive practices and protect consumers.

ll4. Residents of the District and Maryland are injured by the payment of presents

ancl emoluments to the defendant because it tilts the competitive playing field toward his

businesses; causes competing companies ancl their employees to lose business, wages, and tips;

and generates a range of market distortions that restrict and curtail opportunity, diminish

revenues and earnings, and hamper competition

115. The District ancl Maryland have the authority and right to vindicate their interest

in providing and preserving a level playrng field in the hospitality industry, and in ensuring that

their residents are free from the injuries and competitive disaclvantages that flow from

defendant's violations of the Emoluments Clauses.

82 Ofce of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, Hls4itali\
and Tourism, https: / / dmped. dc. gov/pagelhospitality-and-tourism.
83 Id.
8+ Id.
B5 Md. Tourism Development Boarcl , FY 2016 Tourism Deueloment Annual Reort [an,
+, 2017) at 3, http: / /bit.lyl2r0k3Ra.
B6 Md. Dept. of Commerce, Montgomer2 CountL, Md.: Brief Economic Fac (2017) at 2,
http:/ /bit,ly/2rE$v92; Md. Dept. of Commerce, Prince George's Count2, Md: Bri{ Economic Facts
(2017) at 2,http:/ / bit.lyl2sY6PBe.

36
 116. Marylnd's soaeregn nterests n tx reuertues. The defendant's

violations of the Emoluments Clauses also injure Maryland's interest in preserving tax revenue

for the beneft of its residents, For example, National Harbor is a resort development with hotels,

a casino, restaurants, entertainment, a marina, and shops located on the Potomac River in Prince

George's County, Maryland. Although Maryland does not own National Harbor, the various

hotels and other businesses in the complex generate significant tax revenue for state and local

governments, through income tax assessed on the businesses and their employees, sales tax, hotel

tax, and other taxes and fees.

ll7. The National Harbor development inclucles MGM National Harbor, a hotel,

entertainment, shopping, ancl casino complex that is subject to a Community Benefit Agreement

between MGM National Harbor, LLC, and the government of Prince George's County, a

subdivision of the State of Maryland.BT The Community Benefit Agreement sets goals

encouraging MGM National Harbor to hire Prince George's County residents, to contract with

minority business enterprises and other businesses located in the County, and to create

investment opportunities for County residents. The casino is operated under a gaming license

granted by the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission, a state government entity,

Under Maryland law, the state and local governments receive 56% of the proceeds generated by

MGM National Harbor's video lottery terminals and 20'/o of the gross proceeds generated by its

table games.B8 In the first four months of 2017, MGM National Harbor's casino proceeds

contributed more than $75 million in revenue to state and local government treasuries to fund

87 See County Council of Prince George's County, Md., Resolution No. CR-68-2014

fuly 23, 2014) (approving Community Beneft Agreement),http:/ /bit.lyl2rotRaS.

88 Md. Code Ann., State Gov't $ 9-lA-27; Md. Lottery and Gaming Control
Reuenue DuringAril,http:/ /bit lyl2s8zSsD.
Agency, Maryland Casinos Generate 135.7 Million in

3t
various public purposes, including more than $55 million for the State's Education Trust Fund.Be

Any circumstance that impairs National Harbor's ability to attract visitors and guests will

diminish the revenues on which the state and local governments depend.

ll8. Trump International Hotel, located in the District of Columbia, is a direct

competitor of National Harbor's hotels and other businesses, including MGM National Harbor.

Those hotels and businesses suffer competitive harm by the clefendants' ongoing constitutional

violations, and Maryland's tax coflers, in turn, are diminished as a result.eO

Proprietary and other financial injuries to the plaintiffs

I19. The Dstrct of Colurnbi. The District has a financial interest in properties,

venues, and other enterprises located within the District as owner) lender, or lancllorcl.

120, The District owns the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. The

Washington Convention and Sports Authority (also known as Events DC), is an instrumentality

of the government of the District of Columbia. Events DC operates event ancl conference venues

in the District, including the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, D.C. Armory, and

Carnegie Library,

l2l' The District, through Events DC, serves the diplomatic community and foreign

and state governments by providing services that compete with those owned or controlled by the

defendant or the Trump Organization.

122. In fiscal year 2016, Events DC generated over $30 million in revenue from

building rental and ancillary charges. A portion of Events DC's revenue is based on demand for

the Convention Center, D.C.Armory, and Carnegie Library.

B9 Id,
e0 Benjamin Freed, MGM Says lts National Harbor Resort Will 'Blow Awal' Donald
Trum's DC Hotel, Washingtonian ([an. 20, 2016), http://bit.ly/2qXY796.

3B
 123. On August 9, 2016, the Embassy of Colombia partnered with the U.S. Soccer
Foundation to host an Olympic watch party at the Carnegie Library for the soccer match

between the U.S. Women's National team and Colombia.el

124. On September 6, 2016, the Embassy of Tajikistan celebrated Tajikistan

Independence Day at a reception held at the Carnegie Library.sz

125. As discussed above, Trump International Hotel Washington, D.C., specifically

rnarkets its hotel rooms, event space, and food and beverage services to the diplomatic

community and foreign governments.

126, The defendant, his family, ancl other members of the defendant's administration

have continued to promote his hotel properties, such as by making multiple appearances at those

properties, including in connection with official business.

L27. Since the defendant's inauguration, foreign governments (including the Embassy

of Kuwait and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) have held events at the hotel, and public officials

have stated that, since the defendant was elected president, they are more likely to pay for goods

and services at the defendant's properties in an attempt to curry favor with him.

l28. The defendant's receipt or acceptance of presents or emoluments through the

Trump International Hotel Washington, D.C. and other properties owned or controlled by the

defendant or the Trump Organization has resulted in a competitive injury to the Walter E.
Washington Convention Center, D.C. Armory, and Carnegie Library,

er Olympic Watch Party, US Soccer Foundation website (last visitedJune 10, 2017),
http: / /bit,lyl2auRNlm.
92 -..,
T@ik Independence,Washington Diplomat Facebook page (last visitedJune 10,
20 I 7 ), http : / / bit.Lyl 2 rMR3z8.

39
 129. The District's interest is further injured by the loss of the economic value of its

brands in comparison to defendant's brand, as foreign and state governments and their agents

and instrumentalities favor his businesses for reasons related to the defendant's receipt or

acceptance of presents or emoluments.

130. The State of Ma.rylnd, Maryland has a proprietary interest in properties,

venues) and enterprises that clirectly compete with those owned or controlled by the defendant or

the Trump Organization. Maryland suffers economic loss because its enterprises are placed at a

competitive advantage as the result of the defenclant's ongoing violations of the Foreign and

Domestic Emoluments Clauses.

l3l. Specifically, Marylancl has a direct financial interest in the Montgomery County

Conference Center, part of the Bethescla North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center located

in Bethesda, Marylanci. The site of the hotel and conference center is owned by the Montgomery

County Revenue Authority, a public corporation established by Montgomery County, which is a

subdivision of the State of Maryland. The County Revenue Authority leased the conference

center portion of the site to Montgomery County and to the Maryland Stadium Authority, an

instrumentality of the State,e3 as equal tenants-in-common to develop the conference cente r. The

development of the conference center was funded through bonds issued by the Maryland

Stadium Authority, separate bonds issued by the County Revenue Authority, and direct

contributions from Montgomery County. The County Revenue Authority also leased the hotel

portion of the site to a consortium of private investors that funded the development of the hotel.

The hotel and conference center are overseen by a management committee that includes

representatives of Montgomery County and the Maryland Stadium Authority, and the fcility is

93 Md. Cocle Ann., Econ. Dev. $ 10-604 (2008 Repl. Vol.).

+0
operated by Marriott Hotel Services, Inc., under an agreement with Montgomery County, The

conference center offers approximately 39,000 square feet of meeting space. In fiscal year 2016,

activities at the conference center generated, directly and indirectly, an estimated $45.9 million in

spending, andyielded estimated tax revenues of more than $2.7 million for the State and nearly

$1 million for Montgomery County.ea

132. Furthermore, as explained above, the State of Maryland has su{fered financial

harm because it has a sovereign interest in the receipt of tax revenues from facilities (like the

National Harbor) that are in competition with businesses owned by the defendant andlor his

affiliatecl enterprises outsicle the State.

133. The declaratory ancl injunctive relief that the plaintif are seeking would remedy

these injuries by eliminating the plaintifls' competitive disadvantage vis--vis the clefendant.

v.
CI.AIMS

COUNT I
Violations of the Foreign Ernoh"rnents Clause
(Declaratory and Injunctive Relief)

l3+. As discussed in detail above, the defendant has violated-and will continue to

violate-the Foreign Emoluments Clause. The phrase "Person holding any Ofce of Profit or

Trust," as used in the clause, includes the President. The phrases "present" and "Emolument . . .

of any kind whatever" together cover anything of value, including without limitation monetary

and non-monetary gifts or transactions, transactions granting special treatment) and transactions

above marginal cost. And the phrase "any King, Prince, or foreign State" includes any foreign

government and any agent or instrumentality thereof.

s4 Montgomery Couny Conference Center Economic and Fiscal ImpactAnasis FT 2016, Final
Reort (|an, 201 7) at l-2.

+l
 135. The defendant has accepted "presentfs]" or "Emolumentfs]" directly from-or

from agents or instrumentalities of-China, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Indonesia, Saudi

Arabia, Afghanistan, tar,India, Georgia, the United Kingdom, and other "foreign State[s],"

without seeking or obtaining "the Consent of the Congress" as required by the Foreign

Emoluments Clause.

136. As described more fully in paragraphs 29 to 78 herein, the defendant is

committing or will commit these violations in connection with transactions involving the Trump

International Hotel Washington, D.C., New York's Trump Tower ancl Trump World Tower,

restaurants the clefendant owns or that are located in his hotels or other properties, the television

program "The Apprentice" ancl its spinoffs and international versions, and other business ancl

property interests ancl transactions in the United States and abroad.

137. As a direct result of these violations of the Foreign Emoluments Clause, the

plaintiffs, and their residents, have suflered significant harm. They also stand to suffer additional

significant harm directly from the further occurrence of these violations.

l38. No plan announced by the defendant or his attorneys as of the date of this filing

can make this conduct constitutional or otherwise remedy these constitutional violations.

139, The District of Columbia and the State of Maryland are entitled to injunctive

and declaratory relief to stop the above-mentioned Foreign Emoluments Clause violations and

any other Foreign Emoluments Clause violations. This Court has the power to grant such relief

pursuant to its inherent authority to grant equitable relief and 28 U.S.C. $$ 1331 and 2201.

COUNT II
Violations of the Dornestic Ernolurnents Clause
(Declaratory and Injunctive Relief)

140. As discussed in detail above, the defendant has also violated-and will continue

to violate-the Domestic Emoluments Clause. As President, he is the sole subject of the clause.

+2
The phrase "any other Emolument" under the clause covers remuneration beyond the

President's "Compensation" as set by Congress, including monetary and non-monetary

payments or transactions, transactions granting special treatment) and transactions above

marginal cost. And the phrase "the United States, or any of them" includes ny prt of the

federal government, any state government, any local government, and any agent or

instrumentality thereof.

l+1,. The defendant is ancl will be accepting "any other Emolument" from "the

United States, or any of them." As described more fully in paragraphs 79 to 99 herein, the

defenclant has committed violations of the Domestic Emoluments Clause, and without this

Court's intervention he will continue violate the clause .

l+2. As a direct result of these violations of the Domestic Emoluments Clause, the

plaintiffs, and their residents, have suffered significant harm, They also stand to suffer adclitional

significant harm directly from the further occurrence of these violations.

l+9. No plan announced by the defendant or his attorneys as of the date of this fling

can make this conduct constitutional or otherwise remecly these constitutional violations.

l++. The District of Columbia and the State of Maryland are entitled to declaratory

and injunctive relief to stop and prevent the above-mentioned Domestic Emoluments Clause

violations and any other violations of the clause . This Court has the power to grant such relief

pursuant to its inherent authority to grant cquitable relief and 28 U.S.C. $$ l33l and 2201.

43
 vI.
PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, the District of Columbia and the State of Maryland respectfully request

that this Court enter a judgment in their favor and against the defendant, consisting o1

(") A declaratory judgment, stating that the defendant has violated and will continue

to violate the Foreign and Domestic Emoluments Clauses, as construed by this Court;

(b) injunctive relief, enjoining the defendant from violating the Foreign and Domestic

Emoluments Clauses, as construecl by this Court;

(.) such other and further relief as this Court may deem just and proper.

Dated:June 12,2017 'HE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

By' s,/ Natalie O, Ludaway

KnlA. Recwn*
Attorney General for the District of Columbia

Naraun O. Luoewny
Chief Deputy Attorney General
Fecleral Bar No. 12533
natalie.ludaway@dc. gov
SrBpHNr E. Lrros*
Senior Counsel to the Attorney General
stephanie.litos@dc. gov
441 Fourth Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20001
T: (202) 72+-1521
F: (202) 730-1837

*pro hac uice ap lication forthcoming

THE STATE OF MARYT-A,ND

By, c./ ,l.npn ,$tllinnn

BRraN E. FnosH
Attorney General of Maryland

4+
 STBvBN M. SuutveN
Federal Bar No. 24930
[email protected]. md.us
PerrucrB. HucHns
Federal Bar No. 19+92
[email protected]
Assistant Attorneys General
200 Saint Paul Place, 20th Floor
Baltimore, Maryland 21202
T: (al0) s76-6325
F: (al0) 576-6955

Noan D. BooKSTNDER*
nbookbinder@citizensforethics. org
SrueRr C. McPHeu,*
smcphail@citizensforethics, org
Citizens for Responsibility and
Ethics in Washington
455 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., 6th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20001
T: (202)408-5565
F: (202) 5BB-5020

*pro hac aice app hic ation forthcoming

+5