President-Elect Trump is forgetting that the term “high crimes and misdemeanors” used to define the requirements for impeachment is a term of art that… “covers allegations of misconduct peculiar to officials, such as perjury of oath, abuse of authority, bribery, intimidation, misuse of assets, failure to supervise, dereliction of duty, conduct unbecoming, and refusal to obey a lawful order.”
Answer by Cliff Gilley:
What President-Elect Trump is forgetting is that the term “high crimes and misdemeanors” used to define the requirements for impeachment is a term of art that…
“covers allegations of misconduct peculiar to officials, such as perjury of oath, abuse of authority, bribery, intimidation, misuse of assets, failure to supervise, dereliction of duty, conduct unbecoming, and refusal to obey a lawful order.”
So, while he may be entirely technically correct that the laws outlined in the US Code and related regulations do not apply to the office of the President, it does not mean that abusing that discretion cannot have real consequences for him.
He is also seemingly ignoring the Emoluments Clause in the Constitution, which absolutely does apply to the President:
No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.
The key here is whether or not a foreign state’s decision to stay at a Trump hotel (for example) is a “present” under the clause. And for that, we’ll need to wait and see if the Supreme Court is presented with the opportunity to rule on that interpretation.
Is Donald Trump legally correct that "the president can't have a conflict of interest"?
Akira Morikawa 