119-sres470

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 470 Introduced in Senate

    (IS) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
S. RES. 470

Condemning any financial compensation from the Department of Justice to 
President Donald Trump tied to previous Federal investigations into his 
 unlawful actions.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

 October 28, 2025

Ms. Rosen submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
 Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

 RESOLUTION

Condemning any financial compensation from the Department of Justice to 
President Donald Trump tied to previous Federal investigations into his 
 unlawful actions.

Whereas the President of the United States holds a constitutional duty to 
 faithfully execute the laws of the United States and an obligation to 
 respect the independence of the Department of Justice's prosecutorial 
 role;
Whereas the Department of Justice is the preeminent law enforcement agency of 
 the United States and must remain free from personal influence, 
 political coercion, or self-dealing by any elected official, including 
 the President;
Whereas any demand by a President for personal financial compensation from the 
 Department of Justice, an agency under the executive branch of the 
 Federal Government that he or she oversees, represents an extraordinary 
 abuse of the public trust and a breach of fundamental ethical norms;
Whereas President Trump, as a private citizen, filed administrative complaints 
 seeking payments from the Federal Government for alleged damages related 
 to a Federal Bureau of Investigation and Special Counsel investigation 
 into his conduct during the 2016 election and his handling of classified 
 documents;
Whereas these complaints may ultimately be reviewed by employees of the 
 Department of Justice who have worked closely with President Trump in 
 his capacity as a private citizen and political candidate;
Whereas, in January 2025, the Department of Justice removed Associate Deputy 
 Attorney General Bradley Weinsheimer, the senior career ethics official 
 in the Department, from his position;
Whereas, in March 2025, the Department of Justice fired Jeffrey Ragsdale, the 
 Director and Chief Counsel of the Office of Professional Responsibility, 
 who was responsible for overseeing the office within the Department of 
 Justice that investigates attorney misconduct;
Whereas, in July 2025, the Department of Justice fired Joseph Tirrell, the 
 Director of the Departmental Ethics Office, who was responsible for 
 advising the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General on ethics and 
 overseeing the ethics program of the Department of Justice;
Whereas, on October 21, 2025, President Trump alleged that he had ``a lawsuit 
 that was doing very well'' and stated that the Department of Justice 
 would ``owe [him] a lot of money'';
Whereas the public or private attempts by the President to extract $230,000,000 
 in personal payments from the Department of Justice raise serious 
 questions about violations of article II, 

section 1, clause 7 of the 
 Constitution of the United States (commonly known as the ``Domestic 
 Emoluments Clause''), misuse of Government funds, and potential 
 violations of Federal ethics and anti-corruption laws;
Whereas such actions erode public confidence in the impartial administration of 
 justice;
Whereas taxpayer dollars will be used to pay for any financial award to the 
 President;
Whereas the people of the United States are struggling with an unprecedented 
 housing affordability crisis, rising health care costs due to cuts by 
 the Trump Administration and Republicans in Congress and their failure 
 to address expiring tax credits that directly lower the cost of private 
 health insurance, and other rising costs due to inflation and the 
 tariffs imposed by President Trump; and
Whereas the Federal Government has been shut down since October 1, 2025, and 
 most of the approximately 2,400,000 Federal workers across the United 
 States have not received their paychecks: Now, therefore, be it
 Resolved, That the Senate--

    (1) condemns in the strongest possible terms the calls by 
 President Donald Trump for the Department of Justice to pay him 
 $230,000,000;

    (2) opposes the provision of financial compensation through 
 lawsuits, paid from taxpayer money, to President Trump;

    (3) urges any officials of the Department of Justice with 
 personal or professional ties to President Trump to recuse 
 themselves from any review or settlement of these 
 administrative complaints;

    (4) affirms the foundational principle that no public 
 office may be used for personal enrichment;

    (5) reaffirms its commitment to the independence of the 
 Department of Justice's prosecutorial role and the rule of law; 
 and

    (6) calls upon all public officials, including the 
 President of the United States, to uphold the highest ethical 
 standards and to place the public interest above personal gain.
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