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The Donald J. Trump Foundation was a New York-based private foundation founded and chaired by Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States.

Legal actions and closure

Intended dissolution of the Trump Foundation

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_J._Trump_Foundation

In September and October 2016 there were several legal actions and complaints filed against the Trump Foundation. Former head of the Internal Revenue Service's Office of Exempt Organizations Division Marc Owens told The Washington Post regarding the various allegations against the foundation: "This is so bizarre, this laundry list of issues.... It's the first time I've ever seen this, and I've been doing this for 25 years in the IRS, and 40 years total."[41]

In late December 2016, one month before his inauguration, Trump announced that he would dissolve the Trump Foundation to avoid "even the appearance of any conflict with [his] role as President".[30] However, a spokesperson from the New York State Attorney General's office told the New York Times, the same month, that the foundation "cannot legally dissolve" until its current investigation is completed.[31]

Actions by New York State

Initial investigations and Notice of Violation

On September 13, 2016, New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced that his office was investigating the foundation "to make sure it's complying with the laws governing charities in New York."[28][29] The office had previously filed charges—at that time awaiting trial—against the Trump Organization's Trump University. Jason Miller, a Trump campaign spokesman, responded to the announcement by labeling Schneiderman a "partisan hack".[115] Schneiderman has endorsed Hillary Clinton and was identified as a member of her "New York leadership council" in October 2015.[115][116]

On September 30, 2016, the Attorney General's office issued a "Notice of Violation" to the Trump Foundation, ordering it to immediately stop all fundraising in New York and to file its registration and all required past audits within 15 days, or risk being "deemed to be a continuing fraud on the people of the State of New York".[117] Under the law, the foundation may eventually be required to return all donations it had solicited since inception.[46][117][118][119]

The notice said the foundation has not been in compliance with New York law because it had failed to re-register in New York State as a "7A level charitable organization", as required for charities that solicit $25,000 or more a year from outside donors. The Donald J. Trump Foundation had been registered in New York under the state's Estates, Powers and Trusts Law with a designation intended for self-funded private foundations.[46][117]

On October 17 a spokesperson for the Attorney General's office confirmed that the Trump Foundation had agreed to cease solicitation of donations in New York State. The Trump Foundation was at the time granted an extension of time for filing its financial paperwork, including all past audits.[120][121]

The Attorney General's office said the Trump Foundation also agreed to cooperate with their ongoing investigation.[122] The Attorney General's press secretary stated that Trump could not legally dissolve his foundation until the investigation is finished.[123]




Admission of self-dealing

In filing its 2015 IRS Form 990 (filed in 2016 while under investigation by the New York State Attorney General's office), the foundation appears to admit that it had, in previous years, engaged in self-dealing and illegal transfers of funds to "disqualified persons". This admission contradicts its filings for previous years, where there is no admission of the same violations.[124]

New York State vs the Trump Foundation and Trump family

On June 14, 2018, the new New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood filed a civil lawsuit against the foundation, Trump himself, and Trump's three adult children, Ivanka, Eric, and Donald Jr. alleging that they had engaged in "extensive unlawful political conduct" and that Donald Trump had been using the foundation "as his personal checkbook," to, among other things, settle his personal legal debts and support his presidential campaign.[12][10] The lawsuit sought $2.8 million in restitution and the dissolution of the Foundation.[125][126] The suit noted that Trump himself made all decisions about disbursement of foundation funds and that the board of directors hadn't met for 18 years.[127]. Underwood's office also referred suspected Federal campaign and tax law violations to the Federal Election Commission and to the IRS.[32]

Separately, in July 2018, the case was referred to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.[10] In August 2018, the department issued a subpoena to Michael Cohen, formerly Trump's personal attorney, in connection with the case.[128][129]

On August 30, 2018, Trump attorney Alan Futerfas filed a motion to dismiss Underwood's suit, claiming it was without merit and was a result of "pervasive bias" by former New York Attorney General, Eric Schneiderman, who had supervised the investigation before resigning that May. On October 4, 2018, New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood filed a memorandum opposing the motion, instead strengthening the charges against the Trump Foundation and now alleging, among other claims, that the full $2.8 million of distributions resulting from the January 2016 Iowa fundraiser represented illegal campaign contributions that needed to be repaid.[50] The memorandum also stated that the Foundation had engaged in "persistent illegality," adding "Donald J. Trump used his control over the Donald J. Trump Foundation for his benefit to advance his personal, business, and political interests in violation of federal and state law governing charities."[53]

On October 25, Judge Saliann Scarpulla heard arguments for and against the motion to dismissed, but declined to issue a ruling at the time, stating she would await a pending decision by judges from the New York Supreme Court's Appellate Division (the separate Trump-related suit involving Summer Zervos) as to whether a sitting US president could be sued in state court at all.[130][131] On November 23, Scarpulla ruled against the motion to dismiss, affirming that a sitting US president can face "a civil lawsuit in state court for actions not taken in his official capacity".[132]

US Special Counsel Investigation

On April 9, 2018 the New York Times reported that the office of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, as part of his larger investigation into Russian interference into the 2016 election, was investigating the 2015 donation to the Trump Foundation of $150,000 by Ukrainian billionaire Victor Pinchuk.[113] The Times reported that Trump's personal attorney, Michael Cohen, had solicited the donation from Pinchuk in return for Trump's appearance in a 20-minute video conference with Pinchuk and others in Kiev in September 2015, just a few months after Mr Trump officially began his campaign for US President.[113][133] The investigation was part of a broader investigation into foreign influence into the campaign. Federal election law prohibits non-US nationals from contributing to US political campaigns.[114]

Other complaints

Letter from the House Judiciary Committee to the US Attorney General

Also on September 13, 2016, all fifteen Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee sent a letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch requesting that the Justice Department launch a criminal investigation of Trump in connection with his foundation's $25,000 grant to Pam Bondi's campaign. The letter specifically cited possible violations of two anti-bribery laws.[134]

Civil complaint filed with the Internal Revenue Service

Also on September 13, 2016, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a left-leaning watchdog group, filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service citing evidence they argued would compel the agency to seek back taxes and penalties and revoke the foundation's tax-free status

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