James Comer and Katie Porter's bill targeting foreign earnings of Prez and VPs leaves Internet divided

WASHINGTON, DC: On Wednesday, May 22, House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky) and Rep Katie Porter (D-Calif) introduced a bill that would mandate US Presidents to make a series of disclosures regarding their relatives’ foreign earnings.

This bill results from the Republican inquiry into President Joe Biden and entails a long list of obligations, per The Hill.

The proposed legislation would necessitate U.S. Presidents and Vice Presidents to reveal any valuable items received from a foreign country, whether gifts or payments, during their time in office, as well as two years before and after.

Furthermore, the bill would require the Commander-in-Chief and their deputy to disclose any foreign funds received by their immediate family.

What else does this bill aim to achieve?

Additionally, the bill demands that presidents and vice presidents disclose their tax returns from the same period.

This stipulation would have forced former President Donald Trump to break with precedent and release the documents he withheld during his first campaign.

Nevertheless, no specific disclosure obligations for family-owned businesses are stated in the statute.

The family members of Trump and Biden who engaged in business operations abroad stand to benefit from this omission.

It does, however, require presidents and vice presidents to provide tax returns for companies they have passed to family members in the previous four years. This law would apply to Trump's business, which is now controlled by his children.

The Chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, Rep James Comer said in a statement, “Influence peddling is a cottage industry in Washington and we’ve identified deficiencies in current law that have led to a culture of corruption. By creating this bipartisan legislation to provide greater transparency to the financial interactions related to the office of the President and Vice-President, we can ensure that moving forward American Presidents, Vice Presidents, and their family members cannot profit from their proximity to power.”

Rep Katie Porter claimed that “by boosting transparency and requiring additional financial disclosures, Congress can shine a light on improper conduct in the Executive Branch — or be confident that none occurred.”

The bill includes several provisions related to the GOP investigation into President Joe Biden, alleging influence peddling by the Democrat statesman without evidence of official actions benefiting his family.

For instance, the bill mandates that U.S. Presidents and Vice Presidents disclose loans exceeding $10,000 made to family members, referencing a loan President Biden made to his brother James Biden.

It also requires documentation for any travel by family members with the President or Vice President, including whether the travel was for business purposes.

This provision follows criticism of trips taken by Hunter Biden to countries where he had business meetings while his father was Vice President.

White House spokesperson for Oversight and Investigations, Ian Sams, said in a statement, “We’re always happy to look at Congressman Comer’s bright ideas, but on his first day in office, President Biden implemented the strictest ethics standards of any Administration in history, he has publicly released 26 years of his tax returns for the American people to see – the most of any President ever – and publicly releases his personal financial disclosures each year.”

“So the president of course believes in the importance of presidential ethics, and he has already made clear his commitment to upholding strong ethical standards,” he added.

The bill also mandates that USPresidents must reveal any potential conflicts of interest.

Rep Comer introduced this bill the day after Rep Jamie Raskin (Md), the leading Democrat on the committee, put forward his own proposal aimed at foreign funding received by top officials.

Raskin's bill focuses on former President Trump's violation of the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution by not seeking approval from Congress before accepting money from foreign governments through his various businesses.

According to this bill, federal elected officials and certain high-ranking appointees would need to obtain congressional approval before accepting such payments, both during their time in office and for two years after.

This legislation would also extend these requirements to senior White House advisers, specifically targeting a $2 billion deal made by Trump's son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner with the Saudi royal family shortly after leaving the administration.

Internet weighs in as James Comer and Katie Porter introduce bill to target foreign earnings

One X user remarked, "I agree with this. This shouldn't be limited to the president but ALL federally elected officials PLUS the Supreme Court."

Another user said, "Start with trumpy."

Another user wrote, "The Presidents should fill out earnings, and tax returns statements. The two nominees should fill out an SF 86 before the first debates."

One user argued, "once the issue of selling influence is addressed, how about dealing with the insider trading that turns office holders into insanely wealthy people while earning less than 200K and living in one of the country's most expensive cities."

Another X user quipped, "It's too late since Jared Kushner already got his $2B."

Finally, this user tweeted, "... until Trump tells Comer to knock it off..."

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