No, its illegal. Congress specifically passed a law because of Bobby Kennedy…a campaign adviser to John…becoming AG. The President cannot hire family members to work in his administration. They can dance around it by not paying them…aka, the First Lady being a great example. But they cannot give him an official job with a salary.
It is happening. It wasn’t just a random thing that Ivanka sat in the meeting with the Japanese PM while she was also having a meeting with the bank owned by the Japanese government to finance her latest expansion into Japan.
Or its part and parcel of laying the ground work for those truly corrupt and awful things. By literally doing a corrupt thing in hiring him.
I am not onboard with the concept of “Hey, keep your powder dry until he wants to start a nuclear war”. That anything short of some truly awful crimes against humanity should be overlooked.
The MO is the same as with the lies, move so fast on to the next one that there is no time for the old ones to catch up with you. It has worked for him so far.
He has actually been remarkably outspoken about Trump for a long time now, specifically with regards to the Emoluments Clause and his various other conflicts of interest.
Some GOPers are forward enough thinking that what Congress seems willing to allow a precedent to be set for Trump, will come right back on their happy asses when a Dem is elected again. That all the cries of “Unconstitutional!” will fall completely flat then.
I won’t pretend to know wage and hour laws. Is it required a person be compensated for performing work? Say you can voluntarily choose to forgo wages. Does that mean someone could have a nanny watching their children, and the nanny “worked for free” of her own choosing, therefore the fact she wasn’t compensated is legal? Could a restaurant claim all the Mexicans in their kitchen were refusing wages for services rendered?
Interesting questions. As far as the nanny would go…sure. You can certainly ask a neighbor to watch your kids for a while and not pay them…nor are you required to check the immigration status of your neighbors before making such a request.
The restaurant example would be a bit tougher, because one would assume the restaurant is still charging money for the meals being prepared. But, one could argue I suppose, that the kitchen staff is merely volunteering to help out a friend. I doubt that would hold up though…particularly for an ongoing enterprise such as a restaurant would be. But, if the workers were all willing to say they were volunteering as their own choice…then I think it could be a tough case to prove.
So Congress just grants him a waiver. Or a Federal judge. Or no one lodges charges disputing the hire. And if they do the charges are thrown out. Or Congress repeals the law, with renewal subject to their whim by January 19th, 2021. Everyone needs to cease viewing Trump’s behavior in the context of whether it’s legal or illegal. If he does it it’s legal. Get it?
And how much damage will be done in that “matter of time”? The damage may be irreparable. And in the meantime, while we are distracted by the Trump shit show, the “real” Republicans will be pushing through as much regressive legislation as they can.
I agree, mostly because GOP senators and congressmen know they may have a hard time getting reelected if they’ve had a history of bending over for Trump and ignoring their constituencies.
Seems to me Zuckerberg may be thinking about running, and he doesn’t strike me the Republican type. So yes, we could have a Democratic oligarch at one point claiming all the same exemptions.
An Asian restaurant in my city was just raided by the FBI and ICE and the owners were charged with human trafficking. It seems a large portion of their workforce was there under duress, allegedly working off the cost of bringing them to the U.S. from some foreign nation. Indentured servitude in essence. News accounts of the affair made it clear the arresting authorities took a very dim view of the arrangement. I’d think someone working for free would be illegal, for how does anyone know when nefarious circumstances such as I describe above are afoot, when all that’s needed to explain them away is “There are just relatives helping me out of the kindness of their hearts”? Meanwhile back in the cooler Pham and Su-loc are being told they better pray Mom and Dad give out the right story?
It. Doesn’t. Matter.
Trump is going to do whatever he wants.
And get away with it.
He’s now King.
The ruler of all he sees.
People better get used to it.
Perhaps someone someday will offer an explanation as to what qualifies a 36-year-old real estate developer and publisher to be a senior advisor to the president, unless it’s to advise Trump on real estate development and silencing the press. Then again, perhaps someone someday will explain what qualifies a 70-year-old real estate developer and branding maven to be president. I’d just like to see one person working in the White House to has any qualifications for the job.
Exactly. What kind of counsel will Kushner provide Trump when the Chinese are calling in the loans on the Kushner family’s real estate empire? By all accounts, Trump is also in very deep personally and financially with Russian oligarchs and mafiaso. He doesn’t need a public advisor named “Sergei” for us to know that he will take direction from the forces he is beholden to.
Yes, there are a lot of moving parts to the corruption and awfulness in store with a Trump Administration. The best option is to pressure Congress to impeach Trump by year’s end before much more damage can be done.
Perhaps, 2017 is the year the American electorate learns to walk and chew gum.
No, he won’t! Republicans control it; and they have no problem with Trump doing whatever he wants. Trump’s triumph in the election; and his indifference to laws and/or ethics is emblematic of Republican goals, since George W. Bush was president.
