“As if raising taxes on many middle-class families weren’t enough, Trump is forcing taxpayers to pay his legal bills to protect his businesses profits, while he stands to make billions from the Republican tax plan he is pushing. We already knew that Trump only looks out for himself, but this is outrageous. Trump is taking advantage of American taxpayers.” – DNC spokesperson Daniel Wessel

USA Today: Taxpayers pay legal bill to protect Trump business profits

By Nick Penzenstadler

Taxpayers are footing the legal bill for at least 10 Justice Department lawyers and paralegals to work on lawsuits related to President Trump's private businesses.

Neither the White House nor the Justice Department will say how much it is costing taxpayers, but federal payroll records show the salaries of the government lawyers assigned to the cases range from about $133,000 to $185,000.

The government legal team is defending Trump in four lawsuits stemming from his unusual decision not to divest himself from hundreds of his companies that are entangled with customers that include foreign governments and officials.

In the cases, Justice Department attorneys are not defending policy actions Trump took as president. Instead, the taxpayer-funded lawyers are making the case that the president's private companies should be allowed to keep taking profits from foreign governments and officials while he's in office.

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