“Whether it’s a utility token or a memecoin, it’s not regulated by the SEC,” says Lisa Bragança, attorney at Bragança Law and former branch chief at the SEC. Therefore, to avoid the attention of regulators, Trump need only refrain from fraud and unfair trade practices, she says.
However, experts wonder whether it could have legal implications. Though critics have argued from the beginning that TRUMP could create a pathway for bribery—by investing large sums into the coin, driving up its price, politically motivated actors could theoretically curry favor with the president—the dinner brings the risk of violating emoluments restrictions into stark relief.
“If the government of Yemen buys up oodles of memecoins, we won’t know,” says Bragança. “If it’s a utility coin and, say, a representative of Russia shows up for dinner with the president, we know it’s an emoluments issue.”
Today, access to the sitting US president carries a greater potential political currency than ever. “Trump is amalgamating even more power in the executive branch than anyone has before,” claims Hauser. “With ever greater power comes a larger warehouse of favors that can be sold.”
At present, the names of the TRUMP holders set to win a place at the dinner are concealed behind pseudonyms and alphanumeric crypto wallet addresses. The White House did not respond when asked whether the attendee list will be made public.
Whether Trump would face any consequences for theoretically violating foreign emoluments laws depends on the strength of his grip on Congress, the political class tasked with upholding the Constitution, including through impeachment.
In the halls of Congress, calls for Trump’s impeachment are already growing. “He is granting audiences to people who buy the memecoin that directly enriches him,” said Democrat senator Jon Ossoff in a town hall meeting on April 25. “There is no doubt that this president’s conduct has already exceeded any prior standard for impeachment.”
For now, the Republican congressional majority and Trump’s command of his party mean impeachment calls are unlikely to go anywhere. Equally, Trump has previously prevailed in multiple lawsuits alleging that he violated emoluments clauses during his first time in connection with his hotel business, which were later dismissed.
“The violation of the Constitution should be a big deal, but how to make it consequential is challenging,” says Hauser. “Right now, Trump rules the Republican party with such an iron hand that the notion of a successful impeachment leading to a guilty verdict is just somewhat fanciful.”
However, in its potential to paint Trump in an unflattering light—as a president who puts his own financial interests over those of the nation—the TRUMP coin dinner could contribute to shifting the dial. With the midterm elections only a year away and the Republican House majority only slim, public perception matters.
“The opportunity for corruption is not meaningfully changed by the dinner. But the optics are potentially much worse for Trump,” says Hauser. “The unseemliness changes the odds of there being any ramifications to Trump violating the emoluments clause. It creates more vulnerability.”
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