Trump's Broken Laws: A Comprehensive Overview

Since becoming president, Donald Trump has been accused of breaking multiple laws, including those relating to civil and human rights, financial reporting, sexual assault, racketeering, and obstruction of justice.

In January 2023, a federal judge fined Trump and his attorney nearly $1 million, characterising him as a prolific and sophisticated litigant who is repeatedly using the courts to seek revenge on political adversaries.

Trump has been found liable for sexual abuse and defamation and is appealing an order to pay more than $80 million in damages to the victim, E. Jean Carroll. He has also been found liable for fraud regarding the overvaluation of the Trump Organization and his net worth, and is appealing a $364 million fine plus $100 million interest.

In 2024, Trump was convicted on numerous counts of falsifying business records related to hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels.

In December 2022, the parent company of Trump's many businesses, the Trump Organization, was convicted on 17 criminal charges.

In August 2023, a grand jury indicted Trump on four charges for his conduct following the 2020 presidential election through the January 6 Capitol attack: conspiracy to defraud the United States, obstructing an official proceeding, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.

In addition, Trump has been accused of violating the Impoundment Control Act by unilaterally withholding $214 million of legislatively appropriated Defense Department aid for Ukraine without obtaining authorisation from Congress.

Obstruction of an official proceeding

Donald Trump was charged with "obstructing an official proceeding" in relation to his alleged involvement in the January 6 Capitol attack and his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. The charge carries a penalty of a fine or up to 20 years in prison.

The obstruction of an official proceeding is defined under the penal code as "corruptly" obstructing, impeding, or interfering with any official government proceeding. In Trump's case, the Department of Justice (DOJ) alleged that he obstructed Congress' certification of the electoral college results on January 6, 2021. This included creating fake election certificates declaring himself the winner of key swing states and pressuring then-Vice President Mike Pence to disregard President-elect Joe Biden's electors. The DOJ also claimed that Trump pressured the DOJ to falsely claim there were problems with the vote in Georgia or other states.

Trump's actions resulted in the delay of the certification of the electoral vote for approximately six hours, until the Senate and House of Representatives came back into session separately at 8:06 pm and 9:02 pm, respectively, and came together in a Joint Session at 11:35 pm.

Trump's indictment on August 1, 2023, was the third time the former president had been indicted for various alleged crimes. The charges were handed down by Jack Smith, a special counsel with the DOJ, and Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Trump's Defence

Trump's lawyers requested a 60-day extension for pre-trial motions, which was granted, and the trial date was set for March 4, 2024. Trump's team had suggested April 2026.

Trump's attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the indictment, citing presidential immunity under Nixon v. Fitzgerald. They also filed a motion to strike the allegations related to the January 6 Capitol attack as prejudicial and inflammatory. However, these motions were rejected by Judge Tanya Chutkan on December 1, 2023.

Trump's lawyers also requested a less restrictive protective order than what was sought by prosecutors, who wanted to lock down all evidence turned over in discovery. The protective order, issued by Judge Chutkan, allowed Trump to access certain non-sensitive information.

Supreme Court Ruling

On February 6, 2024, the Circuit Court of Appeals panel unanimously affirmed the District Court ruling, concluding that Trump's alleged actions "lacked any lawful discretionary authority" and that he was answerable in court for his conduct as he was no longer President. The panel held that former Presidents have no immunity for "allegedly violat[ing] generally applicable criminal laws" while in office.

The Supreme Court granted a writ of certiorari for Trump's appeal and heard oral arguments on April 25, 2024. On July 1, 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that former presidents have "some immunity from criminal prosecution" for their "official acts" but have "no immunity" for their "unofficial acts" while in office.

Superseding Indictment

On August 27, 2024, the special counsel issued a superseding indictment that maintained the same four charges but omitted some specific allegations to adhere to the Supreme Court's ruling. The indictment was presented to a new grand jury that had not previously heard evidence in the case.

Potential Witnesses and Evidence

Anonymous sources stated that Trump administration White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows received legal immunity from Jack Smith in exchange for testimony under oath. Meadows' attorney, however, stated that Meadows was cooperating with prosecutors but did not confirm that he had received legal immunity.

In a December 5, 2023, court filing, the government alleged that Trump had "sent" his supporters to the Capitol and presented evidence to demonstrate Trump's "post-conspiracy embrace of particularly violent and notorious rioters".

In a separate filing, Smith prosecutors asserted they had evidence in the form of election day text messages between a Trump campaign employee and a campaign attorney in Detroit, indicating that Trump and his co-conspirators knew Biden was taking the lead in Michigan and sought to subvert the results.

Smith prosecutors also intended to present an expert witness at trial who had extracted and examined data from Trump's phone in the weeks while he attempted to subvert the election. The data was obtained from Twitter under a January 2023 search warrant.

Outcome

On November 25, 2024, following Trump's election victory, Smith filed a motion to drop all charges against Trump, citing the DOJ's policy of not prosecuting sitting Presidents. Judge Chutkan approved the request the same day.

Conspiracy to defraud the United States

Donald Trump has been charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, along with three other felony counts, in connection with his efforts to subvert the will of voters in the 2020 election. The indictment, filed by special counsel Jack Smith, accuses Mr. Trump of three conspiracies: one to defraud the United States; a second to obstruct an official government proceeding, the certification of the Electoral College vote; and a third to deprive people of a civil right, the right to have their votes counted.

The indictment states that Mr. Trump and six co-conspirators employed a variety of means to reverse his defeat in the election almost from the moment that voting ended. It describes how Mr. Trump promoted false claims of fraud, sought to bend the Justice Department toward supporting those claims, and oversaw a scheme to create false slates of electors pledged to him in states that were actually won by Joseph R. Biden Jr.

The indictment also describes how Mr. Trump pressured his vice president, Mike Pence, to use the fake electors to subvert the certification of the election at a joint session of Congress on January 6, 2021, that was cut short by the violence at the Capitol.

Mr. Smith, in drafting his charging document, walked a cautious path in connecting Mr. Trump to the mob attack on the Capitol. The indictment mentioned Mr. Trump's "exploitation of the violence and chaos" at the building that day, but did not accuse him of inciting the riot.

Mr. Trump's constant claims of widespread election fraud "were false, and the defendant knew they were false," the indictment said, adding that he was told repeatedly that his assertions were untrue. Despite this, "the defendant was determined to remain in power," the indictment said.

Penalties

Conspiracy to make a false statement

Statements on Vaccines and Autism:

Trump has been accused of spreading anti-vaccine misinformation by equivocating on the link between vaccines and autism. In a press conference in December 2024, he stated that "right now, you have some very brilliant people looking at it," implying that the link between vaccines and autism is still being investigated. However, this notion has been thoroughly discredited by numerous studies over decades, and the idea that there is a connection originated from a fraudulent and scandalous study in the 1990s. By spreading this misinformation, Trump may have endangered public health and contributed to a decrease in vaccination rates.

Statements on Tariffs and China:

Trump has made multiple false claims about tariffs on imported Chinese products. He asserted that the US took in hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs "from China" during his presidency, and that no other president before him had imposed tariffs on China. However, these statements are misleading. US importers, not China, pay these tariffs, and they often pass on the costs to American consumers. Additionally, the US has had tariffs on Chinese imports since the 1700s, so Trump's claim that no previous president had tariffs on China is false.

Statements on Inflation:

Trump has also made false claims about inflation during his presidency and that of his successor, Joe Biden. He stated that there was no inflation during his term, claiming, "I didn't have any inflation and I had massive tariffs on a lot of things." However, prices rose about 8% from the beginning of his presidency to the end, contradicting his assertion. Regarding the Biden administration, Trump exaggerated the inflation rate, stating, "I don't believe the country has ever seen inflation like that." While inflation reached a peak of 9.1% in June 2022, this was nowhere close to the all-time record of 23.7% set in 1920.

Statements on Conflicts and Wars:

Trump repeatedly claimed that there were "no wars" during his presidency, creating a false impression of a peaceful world under his leadership. However, this statement is patently false. Numerous armed conflicts and civil wars were ongoing during his term, including those in Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Ethiopia's Tigray region, and between Israel and Palestine, as well as US troop deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq. Trump's assertion ignores these violent conflicts, giving a misleading picture of global peace during his administration.

Statements on the 2020 Election:

Trump has consistently pushed the false narrative that the 2020 election was stolen from him, stating that if it had been "an honorable election," the US wouldn't be facing problems. However, this is a lie. Trump legitimately lost the election to Joe Biden in a free and fair electoral process. By continuing to spread this falsehood, Trump undermines the integrity of American democracy and sows division among the populace.

Inciting or aiding an insurrection

On January 16, 2021, then-President Trump was impeached for the second time on the grounds of "incitement of insurrection". The impeachment followed Trump's alleged involvement in the insurrection at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, where his supporters stormed the building in an attempt to overturn the 2020 election result.

The "incitement of insurrection" charge is based on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which prohibits any elected official who has taken an oath to support the US Constitution from engaging in "insurrection or rebellion". The 14th Amendment also allows Congress to ban individuals from future political office, which the drafters of the impeachment intended to use to block Trump from running for office again.

The evidence for Trump's incitement of insurrection includes his unsubstantiated claims that he won the 2020 election, and his attempts to subvert the election results in Georgia. On January 2, Trump called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, asking him to "find" enough votes to change the state's election results. On January 6, Trump encouraged a crowd of his supporters to "fight like hell", which resulted in a riot at the Capitol building.

Trump's supporters have a different view of the events of January 6, believing that the rally was largely peaceful and was hijacked by a small number of violent people. They argue that Trump is the victim of "lawfare", or the unjust use of laws to attack political opponents.

While Trump was not charged with insurrection, he was charged with four criminal counts, including conspiracy to defraud the US and conspiracy against the rights of citizens. The charges relate to his status as a political candidate, with prosecutors arguing that he acted as a private citizen and not as president when he undertook the alleged scheme to sway the election.

Trump has denied any wrongdoing and claimed that the charges are politically motivated. The outcome of the case is uncertain, and it remains to be seen whether Trump will face any consequences for his alleged role in the insurrection.

Violation of the Impoundment Control Act

The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 was passed to curtail the president's use of impoundment, particularly for policy reasons. Impoundment occurs when Congress appropriates money that the president then declines to spend.

In March 2019, then-President Donald Trump withheld nearly $400 million in military and other aid to Ukraine, which was intended to help the country defend itself. This was done to pressure President Volodymyr Zelensky to engineer an investigation into Joe Biden.

Trump's withholding of the funds violated the Impoundment Control Act, as he failed to notify Congress about it. The Act requires the president to report to Congress whenever he wishes to hold up or not spend money that has been approved by Congress. In both cases of deferral and rescission, the law requires the president to notify Congress promptly about what he wants to do and why.

For deferrals, the president has more leeway, as long as he spends the money during the current fiscal year. However, deferrals are only allowed to provide for contingencies, due to changes in the law, or to achieve greater efficiencies.

As a result of Trump's violation, the Government Accountability Office argued that the Trump administration broke the law, and the House should add this inquiry to its current investigations.

Trump has expressed his disdain for the Impoundment Control Act, calling it "not a very good act" and "a blatant violation of the separation of powers." He has also stated his intention to reclaim the power of impoundment and use it to "squeeze the bloated federal bureaucracy for massive savings."

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