Investigation Urged Into Trump’s Memocoin Dinner

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have called on the Justice Department to look into Donald Trump’s dinner on May 22, which was attended by key investors in memokines. Their concerns revolve around potential “foreign influence on U.S. policy decisions” as well as possible corruption and violations of the emoluments clause.

In a letter to the Justice Department, 35 House members suggested that Acting Edward Sullivan’s Public Integrity Section initiate an inquiry into the dinner to assess whether it breached federal bribery laws or foreign recruitment clauses set forth in the Constitution.

The emoluments clause specifies that the president cannot accept foreign gifts without Congressional approval. Reports suggest that a significant number of attendees at the Memocoin dinner had ties to foreign crypto exchanges.

The letter highlighted that “U.S. law prohibits foreigners from contributing to U.S. political campaigns.” However, it noted that Trump’s promotion of the dinner—which claimed to offer exclusive access to the president—could provide foreign governments an avenue to gain influence while remaining anonymous.

Prior to the dinner, a press conference was held urging an investigation, coinciding with an event at Trump National Golf Club where a guest list was announced. Outside the venue, protesters, joined by Senator Jeff Merkley, held signs that read “an illegal crypto party” and “democracy is not for sale.”

While some guests tried to conceal their identities with masks, observers confirmed that Tron founder Justin Sun attended, along with other known Trump supporters. Details of all attendees weren’t fully disclosed at the time.

Potential Impact on Legislation

Beyond the investigation, lawmakers have introduced legislation aiming to address concerns labeled as “Trump’s Cryptocracy,” while Congress is reviewing a bill concerning the regulation of stubcoins and market structures.

Initially, some Senate Democrats opposed advancing the Stubcoin bill, called the Genius Act, but later collaborated with Republicans to facilitate discussions in Congress.

Representative Maxine Waters has proposed a bill to limit cryptocurrency access for the president, vice president, and Congress members, including their families. She also seeks amendments to the Genius Act regarding ties to World Liberty Financial, a crypto platform linked to the president’s family that issued USD1 Stubcoin.