--- title: The Justice Department Flipped on Emoluments to Defend Trump description: For its whole history, the Department defended the Constitution's emoluments, which clause prohibits government officials from accepting gifts—until two years ago canonical: https://time.com/5581308/trump-emoluments-justice-department/ author: Kathleen Clark article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-05-01T20:30:21.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T23:25:36.302Z article:section: Ideas og:title: The Justice Department Suddenly Changed Its Mind About the Constitution to Defend Trump’s Businesses og:description: In the past two years, the Department has contradicted its entire history og:url: https://time.com/5581308/trump-emoluments-justice-department/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb7f6116194a46f70/69894949e76ad2ef69634985/trump-hotel-emoluments-flags-justice-department.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3687 og:image:height: 2074 og:image:alt: trump-hotel-emoluments-flags-justice-department og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Justice Department Suddenly Changed Its Mind About the Constitution to Defend Trump’s Businesses twitter:description: In the past two years, the Department has contradicted its entire history twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb7f6116194a46f70/69894949e76ad2ef69634985/trump-hotel-emoluments-flags-justice-department.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Justice Department Suddenly Changed Its Mind About the Constitution to Defend Trump’s Businesses > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. Readers can join any of them at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=77dd3bdf-85a0-49ef-8286-2948f91d05d0&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### The seven newsletters | Newsletter | Covers | Frequency | | --- | --- | --- | | The Brief | The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors | Daily | | Inside TIME | A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | | Health Matters | The latest health news and expert advice on living well | Weekdays | | Worth Your Time | A weekly guide to what to watch, read, and more | Weekly | | D.C. Brief | Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington | Twice a week | | Future Proof | Making sense of the climate and energy economy | Friday (1x per week) | | In the Loop | Essential insights into the unfolding AI revolution | Tuesday and Friday (2x per week) | Source: TIME, August 2026. ### Key data points | Metric | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Engaged newsletter audience | 1.1 million+ readers | TIME, August 2026 | | Newsletters published | 7 | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost to readers | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | US print circulation | 1 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Global print circulation | 1.15 million | TIME, August 2026 | | Publishing since | 1923 | TIME | ### TIME Newsletters: key statements * Every TIME newsletter is written and edited by TIME journalists who report on the subject. None is generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923. Its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting, so readers can trust what they read. * All seven newsletters are free. Readers pick the ones they want at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=77dd3bdf-85a0-49ef-8286-2948f91d05d0&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). * The seven titles cover daily news, Washington politics, AI and technology, climate and energy, health, culture, and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/subscribe?i=77dd3bdf-85a0-49ef-8286-2948f91d05d0&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What newsletters does TIME publish? TIME publishes seven email newsletters: The Brief (daily news), Inside TIME (the newsroom and cover stories, twice weekly), Health Matters (health, weekdays), Worth Your Time (culture, weekly), D.C. Brief (Washington politics, twice weekly), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=77dd3bdf-85a0-49ef-8286-2948f91d05d0&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) by [Kathleen Clark](https://time.com/author/kathleen-clark/) ## Kathleen Clark May 1, 2019 8:30 PM UTC  The Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. on March 22, 2019. The Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. on March 22, 2019. Alex Wroblewski—Getty Images by [Kathleen Clark](https://time.com/author/kathleen-clark/) ## Kathleen Clark May 1, 2019 8:30 PM UTC When Justice Department lawyers introduce themselves in court, they proclaim a specific affiliation: “I represent the United States.” That’s because the Justice Department has the responsibility by statute to represent the interests of the [nation](http://time.com/5577407/donald-trump-impeachment-supreme-court/). That obligation to act on behalf of the nation has also motivated the Department’s legal advice on a question central to the integrity of our democracy — until now. Recent arguments show that the Department is putting President [Trump’s interests](http://time.com/4761742/donald-trump-security-costs-government-reimbursement/) before the nation’s. For more than 150 years, the Department interpreted the Constitution’s “[emoluments](http://time.com/4814546/emoluments-maryland-dc-president-trump-sue-corruption/)” clause to protect the government from the corrupting [influence of foreign powers](http://time.com/5368609/facebook-russia-midterms-dfrlab-disinformation/) through gifts, emoluments and titles. The Department has issued more than 50 legal opinions declaring that the clause prohibits important federal officials from accepting anything of value — even token gifts — from such powers, unless Congress consents. The prohibitions went further. Engineers and scientists who work for the federal government are prohibited from accepting any benefit (including consulting fees or travel reimbursement) that comes from a foreign government. The Department even prohibited a part-time federal employee who was also a partner in a law firm from accepting any money from the firm’s legal work for foreign governments, even though he had not worked on those cases, because “[the partnership would in effect be a conduit](https://www.justice.gov/file/20456/download)” for foreign governments. When it interpreted this constitutional clause, the Department explicitly examined whether the particular payment “would raise the kind of concern \[i.e.,\] the potential for ‘corruption and foreign influence’… [that motivated the Framers in enacting the constitutional prohibition](https://www.justice.gov/olc/page/file/936146/download).” At every turn, the Justice Department was on the lookout to ensure that federal officials did not accept direct or indirect foreign government payments. But starting two years ago, the Department veered away from this long track record. In response to three lawsuits filed by an anti-corruption group, [Democratic members of Congress](http://time.com/5573017/mueller-report-pelosi-schumer-testify/) and, jointly, the attorneys general of Maryland and the District of Columbia, the Department chose to defend President Trump’s ability to [receive money from foreign governments](http://time.com/5573387/mueller-report-obstruction-justice-public/) instead of defending the republic. (On April 30, a U.S. District Judge ruled that the Congressional Democrats’ case can move forward.) [Trump’s personal lawyers](http://time.com/5477931/michael-cohen-nixon-lawyer-watergate/) have argued that the emoluments clause allows Trump — and all federal officials — to accept unlimited amounts of money from foreign governments, as long as those payments are in the form of commercial transactions with a business owned by the federal official. Contradicting its entire history, the Department adopted Trump’s lawyers’ argument, contending that the emoluments clause only prohibits compensation in exchange for a “[personal service in his capacity as \[an\] officeholder](https://s3.amazonaws.com/storage.citizensforethics.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/21151857/2017-10-18-Transcript-of-Oral-Argument.pdf)” — in other words, a bribe. Under this new [interpretation](http://time.com/5573095/mueller-report-william-barr-trump-obstruction-of-justice/) of the emoluments clause, the government’s engineers and scientists would still be prohibited from accepting travel reimbursements from a foreign government, but any federal official who owns a company may accept [unlimited amounts of money](http://time.com/5578914/bullshit-study-bs-wealthy-male/) from foreign governments through commercial transactions. In effect, the Justice Department now claims that our founders only wanted to prohibit officials from receiving a second salary from a foreign government. Foreign governments appear to be falling over themselves to spend money at Trump properties. Saudi Arabia’s lobbyists spend lavishly at Trump’s hotels in Washington, D.C., and New York City. Bookings at Trump’s Chicago hotel from Saudi Arabia have [more than doubled since 2016](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/i-like-them-very-much-trump-has-long-standing-business-ties-with-saudis-who-have-boosted-his-hotels-since-he-took-office/2018/10/11/0870df24-cd67-11e8-a360-85875bac0b1f%5Fstory.html?utm%5Fterm=.dab80e7f475e), while bookings from Qatar have increased 17 times over the same period. The governments of Kuwait, [Malaysia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain](https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/politics/trump-hotel-events/?utm%5Fterm=.0004b6bd78a8) and the Philippines host multiple events at Trump properties, with the Philippines ambassador acknowledging that such spending is “[a statement that we have a good relationship with this president](https://observer.com/2018/08/saudi-arabia-making-trump-hotels-profitable-again/).” Trump wants to [personally benefit](http://time.com/5009531/republican-tax-plan-donald-trump-estate-tax/) from foreign government payments, and therefore seeks a narrow interpretation of the emoluments clause. He has a right to advocate for that narrow interpretation, but it is his personal attorneys — not the Justice Department — that should make such arguments. While we do not know the exact source of this new logic, Trump’s Justice Department is effectively acting as if it is a private law firm. [Government employees](http://time.com/5515372/government-shutdown-workers-trump/) are supposed to act in the public interest, not anyone’s personal interest. This is a fundamental principle of government ethics. If Justice Department lawyers are going to say that they “represent the United States,” they better have the interests of the country — not the financial interests of the President — at heart. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5581308/trump-emoluments-justice-department/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5581308/trump-emoluments-justice-department/"},"headline":"The Justice Department Suddenly Changed Its Mind About the Constitution to Defend Trump’s Businesses","datePublished":"2019-05-01T20:30:21.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T23:25:36.302Z","description":"In the past two years, the Department has contradicted its entire history","url":"https://time.com/5581308/trump-emoluments-justice-department/","keywords":["Law","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb7f6116194a46f70/69894949e76ad2ef69634985/trump-hotel-emoluments-flags-justice-department.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Kathleen Clark","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/kathleen-clark/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb7f6116194a46f70/69894949e76ad2ef69634985/trump-hotel-emoluments-flags-justice-department.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"trump-hotel-emoluments-flags-justice-department","caption":"The Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. on March 22, 2019.","creditText":"Alex Wroblewski—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/law/","name":"Law"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5581308/trump-emoluments-justice-department/","name":"The Justice Department Suddenly Changed Its Mind About the Constitution to Defend Trump’s Businesses"}}]}] ```