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Trump makes big money off presidency: House oversight chairman

Elijah Cummings, the chairman of the House oversight committee (File photo)

The chairman of the US House Oversight and Reform Committee, Elijah Cummings, says President Donald Trump is making "a lot of money" off the presidency.

According to the Constitution and the laws, "It's not okay," he said in an interview with "60 Minutes" aired on Sunday.

The public should know whether Trump is profiting through increased revenue at his hotels, golf courses and other business ventures, he said.

"I still believe that people -- the average citizen, the guys on my block, they ought to know if the president is making a deal, whether he's making it -- making it in his self-interest or that of the country.”

The Republican President still owns his business despite relinquishing day-to-day control to his children.

In response, the White House said the accusations are “completely baseless, but we cannot comment further about ongoing litigation.”

Cummings, a 13-term House lawmaker, is the new chairman of a committee that he has said would launch a number of investigations into the chief executive and his administration.

“There’s so much,” Cummings said. “We’ve got to hit the ground, not running, but flying.”

The committee has the constitutional authority to investigate anything it wishes, making Cummings one of the most powerful chairmen under the chamber’s new Democratic leadership.

This comes as the attorneys general of Maryland and the District of Columbia have lodged a suit against Trump for violating the US Constitution through holding a financial interest in his hotel in Washington.

In another case, nearly 200 Democratic members of Congress have filed a lawsuit to prevent Trump from taking any money from foreign states at his global businesses without first obtaining Congressional approval.


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