Trump Law-Breaking and Corruption Tracker--March 2, 2025
Below is the updated Trump Law-Breaking and Corruption Tracker. Original explanation of why we are doing this here.
We list instances of law-breaking and corruption separately and in chronological order, from most recent to oldest. Undoubtedly, we may miss some items, so feel free to let us know if you spot anything we’ve overlooked.
We don’t include it in our list below since it is not breaking the law nor corrupting American democracy but the Trump/Vance blowup with Zelensky on Friday is its own form of corruption—of the very values of the United States. We wrote in December in The Silencing of the Chimes about the end of America’s role as a beacon of freedom and last month in The Third Man we described the new 19th century geopolitical world we now inhabit in which America is a malevolent actor. It was all on display for the world to see in the oval office last Friday. The rest of the world, the freedom loving part of it anyway, must act now and organize to counter this malevolent actor, to defend freedom in this new age. It will be difficult given the level of corruption and law breaking listed below by the current U.S. administration.
We plan to update this list weekly.
This Week’s Entries
February 24 - March 2, 2025
Breaking the Law
Asking IRS for taxpayers data of possible illegal immigrants. Reported February 27, 2025
The Washington Post reported, “Department of Homeland Security authorities asked the IRS on Thursday to connect the names of potentially undocumented immigrants with the people’s last known addresses, phone numbers and email addresses.” It is illegal for the IRS to provide taxpayer information to outsiders, including other parts of the federal government. The IRS itself can do investigations, including of those suspected of being in the country illegally (though since DOGE has fired hundreds of IRS employees there’s fewer workers to conduct investigations). But they can’t hand over taxpayer information to DHS. Remember the names DHS are asking for are potentially here illegally, not definitively here illegally.
IRS rejected request for addresses of people believed to be in U.S. illegally - The Washington Post
Corruption
SEC Halts investigation of Justin Sun, who has infused funds into Trump-owned company. January 26, 2025
In March, 2023, Sun, a Chinese national, had been charged by the SEC of crypto fraud. After Trump was elected, Sun announced he “purchased $30 million in crypto tokens from World Liberty Financial (WLF), a new venture backed by President Donald Trump and his family.” This apparently was the largest investment in WLF. On Wednesday, the SEC, now under Trump control, asked the judge to drop the case. The judge did so.
BREAKING: SEC halts fraud prosecution of Chinese national who sent Trump millions
Demotion of Prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney DC Office for working on January 6th investigations. January 28th
The Trump administration continues to punish anyone involved in the January 6th investigations and prosecutions. The Washington Post reports, “Seven top leaders of the U.S. attorney’s office for Washington, D.C., were demoted to misdemeanor and entry-level intake positions Friday.” In previous years, these seven were assigned to work on January 6th and other cases against those associated with Trump, such as Steve Bannon. The demotion of these seven comes on top of other retribution and firings of others involved in investigating and prosecuting the January 6th insurrection. These are blatantly corrupt actions by Trump II and undermine democracy.
Seven top D.C. prosecutors demoted in Trump U.S. attorney-led purge - The Washington Post
Dismantling of Civil Rights Office. January 28, 2025
The Trump administration is closing civil rights offices and firing staff across multiple agencies who work on civil rights issues. It is part of the anti-woke crusade, which sure seems very woke to us in its zeal and inaccuracies. One example of the closings and firings: “The Social Security Administration this week announced it was closing its Office of Civil Rights and Equal Opportunity, where about 150 people worked investigating civil rights complaints, preventing harassment and ensuring accommodations for people with disabilities…” You might be against some of the investigations these agencies do. But these offices and staff are upholding current law. Change the law if you don’t want investigations of the laws being broken.
Federal agencies are dismantling civil rights, EEO offices - The Washington Post
Add demotion of January 6 investigators from Kevin Drum and ending civil rights protections
February 17 - 23, 2025
Breaking the Law
Ignoring court order to resume foreign assistance spending. February 20, 2025
”U.S. District Court Judge Amir H. Ali ordered the Trump administration to comply with a temporary restraining order (TRO) lifting its 90-day pause on foreign aid.” But the Trump administration has ignored this order. We know first-hand organizations who are still not receiving USAID funding despite this Judge’s order. People keep saying they are worried we will enter a constitutional crisis. They are using the wrong tense, it has already occurred. In fact, there is an ongoing assault on the Constitution.
Trump administration says it can keep acting despite judges’ orders - The Washington Post
Corruption
Musk threatening companies to advertise on x. Revealed on February 19, 2025
The advertising conglomerate Interpublic Group asserts that a lawyer from X told them, “Get your clients to spend more on Elon Musk’s social-media platform, or else….Interpublic leaders interpreted the communications from X as reminders that the recently announced $13 billion deal to merge Interpublic with rival Omnicom Group could be torpedoed, or at least slowed down, by the Trump administration.” This is a blatant case of corruption. Hat tip: Kevin Drum.
Exclusive | X Hinted at Possible Deal Trouble in Talks With Ad Giant to Increase Spending - WSJ
Past Week’s Entries
February 17 - 23, 2025
Breaking the Law
Ignoring court order to resume foreign assistance spending. February 20, 2025
”U.S. District Court Judge Amir H. Ali ordered the Trump administration to comply with a temporary restraining order (TRO) lifting its 90-day pause on foreign aid.” But the Trump administration has ignored this order. We know first-hand organizations who are still not receiving USAID funding despite this Judge’s order. People keep saying they are worried we will enter a constitutional crisis. They are using the wrong tense, it has already occurred. In fact, there is an ongoing assault on the Constitution.
Trump administration says it can keep acting despite judges’ orders - The Washington Post
Corruption
Musk threatening companies to advertise on x. Revealed on February 19, 2025
The advertising conglomerate Interpublic Group asserts that a lawyer from X told them, “Get your clients to spend more on Elon Musk’s social-media platform, or else….Interpublic leaders interpreted the communications from X as reminders that the recently announced $13 billion deal to merge Interpublic with rival Omnicom Group could be torpedoed, or at least slowed down, by the Trump administration.” This is a blatant case of corruption. Hat tip: Kevin Drum.
Exclusive | X Hinted at Possible Deal Trouble in Talks With Ad Giant to Increase Spending - WSJ
February 10 - 16, 2025
Breaking the Law
Continuing to break TikTok law. February 13, 2025
This week the Trump administration’s justice department sent a letter to Apple and Google assuring them they would not be prosecuted under the TikTok law. This letter essentially executes on a promise made in the January 20th executive order calling for a 75-delay in the law. Consequently, Google and Apple have now restored TikTok to their app stores. The Justice Department has no legal power to do this just as Trump had no power to issue such an executive order. The law was passed overwhelmingly by Congress and signed by Biden. This is a blatant breaking of the law.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/02/13/tiktok-app-stores-apple-google/
Corruption
Dismissing Without Prejudice charges against NYC Mayor Eric Adams. February 11, 2025
As the Washington Post reports, “acting deputy attorney general Emil Bove said the decision was not based on the evidence or theory of the case against Adams” but rather because Adams “should be free ‘to devote full attention and resources’ to addressing illegal immigration and violent crime in New York City.” It’s okay to break the law as long as you adhere to Trump’s immigration policies. Thus far lawyers in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in NYC are refusing to implement this corruption.
Prosecutors should drop charges against NY Mayor Eric Adams, DOJ says - The Washington Post
Suspending enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). February 10, 2025
The idea behind the suspension is to bolster U.S. business competitivness abroad. I’ve seen usually level headed analysts such as Noah Smith approve of this. But to our mind, this is further evidence of a descent into 19th century geopolitics and economy. The world economy is becoming less efficient and this will add to it.
Relief for Adani as Trump suspends foreign corrupt practices law
Breaking The Law
February 3 - 9, 2025
Shutting Down and/or Reorganizing USAID. February 3, 2025
USAID was created by statute and can’t just be shut down. It also cannot be reorganized without providing 15 days notice to Congress. It is also not clear that employees can be fired and recalled internationally in the way the Trump administration is doing.
https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IN/IN12500DOGE access to Treasury payment systems. (Sometime after January 20th, Judges ruling against occured on February 6, 2025)
A judge has now struck this down but nonetheless this is another case of the Trump administration breaking the law.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/02/04/elon-musk-government-legal-doge/ and https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/07/nyregion/attorneys-general-trump-musk-suit.html
January 28 - February 2, 2025
Deletion of federal websites. February 1, 2025
On Saturday, a bunch of websites we’re deleted, including foreignassistance.gov—that website is required by law by the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountabilty Act of 2016. If the site goes down for maintenance, that is probably not against the law but an extended downtime might be.
US Government Websites Are Disappearing in Real Time | WIRED“Deferred resignation” offered to federal employees. January 28th, 2025
For now we’re putting this in italics. It is not clear under what authority the Office of Personnel and Management (OPM) can offer these buyouts since the workers are employees of the agencies and their salaries funded by those agencies. It’s also not clear there is legal authority to offer early retirement
Musk team’s push for federal worker buyouts bypassed key Trump officials - The Washington Post
January 20 - 27, 2025
Pausing all grants and loans disbursed by federal government. January 27, 2025
Congress authorizes and appropriates federal funds. The executive branch executes the dispersal of funding. It does not have the power to stop funding. From WA Post: The order’s legality may be contested, but the president is generally allowed under the law to defer spending for a period of time if certain conditions are met, according to budget experts. To comply, though, Trump must make clear which budget accounts are frozen, and the budget office’s order may not have given sufficient grounds under the law to pause the funding. Pausing it over policy disagreements is not legal, said Bobby Kogan, a federal budget expert at the left-leaning Center for American Progress and a former Biden administration official.
White House pauses all federal grants, sparking confusion - The Washington Post More details here: Trump Tries to Seize ‘the Power of the Purse’ - The AtlanticFiring Inspector Generals at various agencies. January 24, 2025
The law requires the president to notify Congress 30 days before firing an inspector general.
Trump fires at least 14 independent inspectors general in late-night purge - The Washington PostBlocking entry to migrants who have passed through countries with communicable diseases. January 20th 2025
Title 42 requires citing a specific communicable disease threat. The Trump administration did not do this.
Diseased Illegal Immigrants Aren't "Invading" the United States | Cato at Liberty BlogIssues unconstitutional executive order on birth right citizenship. January 20, 2025
To end such citizenship requires a constitutional amendment, not an executive order. The president does not have such power.
Protecting The Meaning And Value Of American Citizenship – The White HouseTik Tok 75-day extension. January 20, 2025
There is no provision in the law for doing this (Biden also broke the law in his last day in office). The TikTok law provides for a 90-day extension, if Congress certifies there is tangible divestment of the company occurring. No such certification was made, no divestment was occurring.
TikTok Ban Live Updates: Trump Halts Ban For 75 Days—After CEO Attends Inauguration
Corruption
February 3 - 9, 2025
Loyalty Tests for law enforcement and intelligence Jobs. Ongoing
The Washington Post reports, “Candidates for top intelligence and law enforcement jobs were asked to give “yes” or “no” responses to questions such as: Was Jan. 6 “an inside job?” This is Communist Party of China/East Germany stuff.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/02/08/trump-administration-job-candidates-loyalty-screening/Elminates teams working to fight foreign interference in U.S. elections. February 9, 2025
The administration eliminated the FBI task force that works to “uncover covert efforts by Russia, China, Iran and other foreign adversaries to manipulate U.S. voters” and placed on administrative leave Homeland Security staff who work on the election security arm of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/02/08/trump-administration-cuts-election-security-teams/Calls for Palestinians to be evicted from Gaza. February 5, 2025
This is against international law. We decided the Breaking the Law Section above should only include U.S. laws so have placed this item under corruption.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/02/05/gaza-trump-ethnic-cleansing-displacement/Nominee for FBI has received payments from Russian entities and has investments in Chinese company, Shein. February 6, 2025
”This is the same nominee who has vowed to stop investigating Chinese espionage in the U.S. With such financial stakes, one is led to wonder why.”—Rush Doshi
https://x.com/RushDoshi/status/1886237936842092798 and https://x.com/RushDoshi/status/1887679736387625067
January 28 - February 2, 2025
Purge of FBI agents. Saturday, February 1
This is not a reform effort but rather vengeance against law enforcement officers who were involved in investigating Trump and Trump allied individuals and groups
FBI Agents Are Stunned by the Scale of the Expected Trump Purge - The AtlanticFiring of federal prosecutors involved in January 6th prosecutions. January 31st, 2025
This is vengeance against legitimate prosecutions of political insurrection. The firing of these prosecutors makes future such assaults on democracy more likely
Jan. 6 prosecutors fired by Trump D.C. U.S. attorney Ed Martin - The Washington Post
January 28 - February 2, 2025
Pardoned and commuted sentences of January 6 insurrectionists. January 20th, 2025
Excuses past anti-democratic behavior and sanctions future such efforts
Trump pardons some 1,500 Jan. 6 rioters, commutes 14 sentences : NPRExecutive Order “Ending the Weaponization of the Federal Government. January 20, 2025
Orders the federal government to investigate those who investigated the insurrection of January 6, 2020. It makes a baseless claim of persecution of insurrectionists: “And while the Department of Justice has ruthlessly prosecuted more than 1,500 individuals associated with January 6, and simultaneously dropped nearly all cases against BLM rioters. “
Ending The Weaponization Of The Federal Government – The White HouseCreation of meme coin, $Trump. January 18, 2025
Enriches Trump and his family by allowing individuals to buy his meme coin. This can easily become influence peddling.
Trump launches his own $TRUMP meme coin, price soars overnight - CBS News