Associated Press/Evan Vucci
President Donald Trump talks with reporters after receiving a briefing on Hurricane Dorian in the Oval Office of the White House, September 4, 2019, in Washington DC.
- The Democratic National Committee's research team is compiling a dossier of lawsuits on President Donald Trump that span across the US, according to an Axios report on Sunday.
- The DNC reportedly investigated 7,000 lawsuits and composed a document of Trump's seemingly uncompromising statements during the 2016 campaign trail, in which he told supporters that Mexico would pay for the US-Mexico border wall.
- News of the document's existence comes amid intense scrutiny around Trump's decision to divert $3.6 billion for military construction projects to pay for nearly a dozen projects on the border.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
The Democratic National Committee's research team is conducting research of lawsuits on President Donald Trump that span across the US, according to an Axios report on Sunday.
The DNC reportedly investigated 7,000 lawsuits and composed a document of Trump's seemingly uncompromising statements during the 2016 campaign trail, in which he told supporters that Mexico would pay for the US-Mexico border wall.
News of the document's existence comes amid intense scrutiny around Trump's decision to divert $3.6 billion for military construction projects to pay for nearly a dozen projects on the border. Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Tuesday approved the transfer, citing that it would "allow [the Defense Department] to provide support to [Homeland Security] more efficiently and effectively."
The decision sparked outrage amongst Democrats, who pointed to numerous instances in which Trump touted his keystone project - and how Mexico will fund the wall. Trump later backtracked on the issue of funding, telling reporters in January that he did not mean Mexico would "write out a check."
"When, during the campaign, I would say Mexico is going to pay for it, obviously I never said this and I never meant they're going to write out a check," Trump said. "I said they were going to pay for it - they are. They're paying for it with the incredible deal we made called the United States-Mexico-Canada, USMCA deal."
Different groups, news reporters, and Democrats are expected to possess the unflattering dossier, a source told Axios. The report comes as Democratic candidates prepare for their third debate for the 2020 presidential elections on Thursday, and as a handful of Republicans prepare to challenge Trump's potential second term.
DNC chairman Tom Perez said in a recent meeting with other strategists that the move was to "make it about [Trump's] performance as president, not his bigotry or awfulness," a source said to Axios. "Prosecute the case that he is bad at his job and it is hurting people in real way."
A Democrat with knowledge of the plans told Axios that there were "so many ways his actual policies have really hurt people or how he's been ineffective in fulfilling his promises."