President Donald Trump is on a “public corruption tour”—at least that’s what Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut calls it.
During a 20-minute speech on the Senate floor Tuesday, Murphy took a swing at Trump’s blatant corruption, drawing parallels to former Democratic Gov. Edwin Edwards of Louisiana, who was convicted on 17 counts of racketeering, fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering in 2000. Edwards was sentenced to 10 years in prison, serving 8 of them.
“He’s no less corrupt than Edwin Edwards of Louisiana. In fact, he's way more corrupt. Edwin Edwards took $400,000, while in the Middle East, Donald Trump will cement deals totaling in the billions in exchange for favorable treatment by the U.S. federal government for these Gulf countries,” Murphy said.
“He's not ashamed. He’s not doing it in secret,” he continued. “His corruption is wildly public, and his hope is that by doing it publicly, he can con the American people into thinking that it's not corruption because he's not hiding it.”
Murphy also highlighted how Trump’s relationship with the Middle East is textbook corruption. From appointing his family’s crypto negotiator and partner Steve Witkoff as Middle East envoy to his son-in-law securing billion-dollar deals with Saudi Arabia, Trump has shown an unabashed willingness to take bribes in plain sight.
Most recently, Trump indicated he is willing to accept a $400 million luxury jet from Qatar.
At the same time, Trump has barred wire service reporters from traveling with him on Air Force One during his current Middle East cash grab.
“Trump lines his pockets, he corrupts our foreign policy to enrich himself, while driving up prices and stealing health care from average Americans,” Murphy concluded. “It's a national security disaster, and it's a moral abomination.”
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