Resolution in Support of Congressional Investigation regarding the impeachment of President Donald J. Trump

VOTED: That the Town adopt the following resolution:

Resolution in Support of Congressional Investigation regarding Impeachment of President Donald J. Trump

WHEREAS, the Foreign Emoluments Clause of the United States Constitution provides that "no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them [i.e. the United States], shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State," thereby prohibiting conflicts of interest that could influence the conduct of the foreign affairs of the United States,

WHEREAS, the Domestic Emoluments Clause of the United States Constitution provides that, besides the fixed salary for his four-year term, the President "shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them," thereby prohibiting conflicts of interest that could influence the conduct of the domestic affairs of the United States,

WHEREAS, the term "emoluments" includes a broad range of financial benefits, including but not limited to monetary payments, purchase of goods and services, subsidies, tax breaks, extensions of credit, and favorable regulatory treatment,

WHEREAS, Donald J. Trump, the President of the United States, owns various business interests and receives various streams of income from all over the world,

WHEREAS, many of these businesses receive income and benefits from foreign governments, states of the United States, or the United States itself,

WHEREAS, leading constitutional scholars and government ethics experts warned Donald J. Trump shortly after the November 2016 election that, unless he fully divested his businesses and invested the money in conflict-free assets or a blind trust, he would violate the Constitution from the moment he took office,

WHEREAS, on January 11, 2017, nine days before his inauguration, Donald J. Trump announced a plan that would, if carried out, remove him from day-to- day operations of his businesses, but not eliminate any of the ongoing flow of income and benefits from foreign governments, state governments, or the United States government,

WHEREAS, on January 20, 2017, Donald J. Trump took the oath of office and became President of the United States,

WHEREAS, evidence suggests that President Trump was is in violation of the Foreign Emoluments Clause and the Domestic Emoluments Clause of the United States Constitution,

WHEREAS, any such violations would undermine the integrity of the Presidency and violate the public trust,

WHEREAS, our democracy is premised on the bedrock principle that no one is above the law, not even the President of the United States,

NOW, THEREFORE, Brookline Town Meeting RESOLVES to call upon the United States House of Representatives to support a resolution authorizing and directing the House Committee on the Judiciary to investigate whether sufficient grounds exist for the impeachment of Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, including but not limited to the violations listed herein; and,

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this resolution be transmitted officially to the Member of the United States House of Representatives that represents the town, namely, the Honorable Joseph Kennedy III.