A federal appeals court on Friday dismissed lawmakers' lawsuit against President Donald Trump for violating the emoluments clause of the U.S. Constitution on technical grounds.
In the ruling, the three-judge panel of the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia found the 215 members of Congress did not have legal standing to bring suit against the president for violating the clause, which bars federal officials from collecting payments from foreign governments without approval of Congress.
The clause reads, "No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States: and no person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state."
