State attorneys general suing Trump for allegedly violating the Constitution’s emoluments clause dismissed claims against the president in his personal capacity in an effort to speed up the case.
Writing that they are dismissing the portion of the suit that targeted Trump’s personal liability over alleged emoluments violations, attorneys general for Maryland and DC wrote that the intent was “to allow the claims against President Trump in his official capacity to move forward expeditiously.”
Other claims focus on Trump in his official capacity. As a government official, the official capacity claim is treated as a lawsuit against the government that Trump represents, compelling the Justice Department to defend against the suit.
That claim is currently being litigated in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, as the Justice Department tries to put a stop to discovery at the district court level before the state attorneys general receive responses to their first round of subpoenas by the Jan. 3 deadline.
