In victory for Trump, judge tosses suit on foreign payments

Carlos Barria | Reuters

President Donald Trump delivers a speech on tax reform legislation at the White House in Washington, U.S., December 13, 2017.

A federal judge in New York on Thursday threw out a lawsuit claiming that President Donald Trump violated the U.S. Constitution by accepting foreign payments through his hotels and other businesses, handing him a major victory on an issue that has dogged him since before he took office in January.

Though other lawsuits remain pending that make similar claims, the ruling by U.S. District Judge George Daniels is the first to weigh the merits of the U.S. Constitution’s anti-corruption provisions as they apply to Trump, a wealthy businessman who as president regularly visits his own hotels, resorts and golf clubs.

In his 29-page opinion granting the government’s request to toss the suit, Daniels said the plaintiffs were not legally entitled to sue.