Democratic lawmakers will introduce a bill Wednesday to ban the president, vice president and their families from collecting lawsuit settlement payments from the government.
The bill, dubbed the "Ban Presidential Plunder of Taxpayer Funds Act," comes after President Donald Trump sued the IRS and the Treasury Department for $10 billion over the leak of his tax records, and those of his sons and his company, to news outlets. Trump said he would donate any money he received to charity, but the lawsuit enraged critics who argued that any money he might receive from a settlement would come from taxpayers.
Months earlier, Trump acknowledged he was seeking damages from the Justice Department, saying, "I guess they owe me a lot of money."
Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Rep. Dave Min of California are introducing the bill in their respective chambers.
The bill, shared with NBC News, would ban the president, the vice president, their spouses and children and any trust "that exists for their benefit" or "entity they own or control" from collecting payments as part of a settlement agreement, which parties sometimes reach in order to avoid going to court.
Presidents and vice presidents could collect compensatory damages if a judge appoints an independent counsel to represent the federal entity being sued and also makes court proceedings public. Compensatory damages are awarded by courts to provide restitution for losses.
The bill would also impose the restrictions on former presidents if their vice presidents were to succeed them in the Oval Office. Former presidents and vice presidents could collect damages under certain conditions, among them that no one appointed by a president or a vice president is involved in the claim and that any settlement agreement or payment is ultimately made public and detailed to Congress.
"While American families are getting flattened by skyrocketing costs, Donald Trump is trying to snatch up billions of taxpayer dollars to line his own pockets and settle personal scores," Warren said in a statement. "My bill will close the loopholes that enable this apparent corruption and ban Trump — and all future Presidents and Vice Presidents — from abusing their power and stealing Americans’ hard-earned money."
Reached for comment, White House spokesperson Kush Desai suggested that Democrats had better issues to focus on.
"In between the SAVE America Act to secure our elections and the Great Healthcare Plan to reduce drug prices and insurance premiums, Democrats in Congress have plenty other things they could be working on to actually help the American people," he said in a statement, referring to White house backed policy proposals.
Lawmakers have pursued similar legislation in the past. In February, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., introduced a bill to tax damages received by a president or vice president from the federal government at 100%, effectively negating any profit from the agreement. That bill has not received a vote in the Senate.
