Trump orders Attorney General Pam Bondi to pause enforcement of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. President Donald Trump has directed the Department of Justice to stop enforcing a nearly century-old law that prohibits American corporations from bribing foreign government officials to advance their own financial interests. As reporters watched him in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump signed the document, which directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to stop enforcing the 1934 law until she issues new enforcement guidelines.
“It’s going to mean a lot more business for America,” he said. A White House fact sheet seen by The Independent states that all current and past uses of the anti-corruption law will be reviewed by justice department officials. The fact sheet also states the White House’s view that American corporations are disadvantaged by prohibitions on bribing corrupt foreign officials because such activity is common in international business transactions .
“U.S. companies are harmed by FCPA overenforcement because they are prohibited from engaging in practices common among international competitors, creating an uneven playing field,” the White House said. At the same time, Trump also told reporters he was issuing a pardon of former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, a former Democratic elected official who the president had freed from prison by commuting his 14-year sentence during his first term in the White House.
Blagojevich had been convicted of public corruption for attempting to sell the U.S. Senate seat that was vacated by former president Barack Obama after he won the 2008 presidential election. While Trump’s new order suspends enforcement of anti-corruption law against American corporations, the action was just one of several recent actions he’s taken to weaken enforcement of ethics laws since returning to office nearly a month ago.
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