It has been four months since former President Donald Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr was hit with a $4 million fine and a ban on serving as an officer of a New York company for two years. Trump Jr. is now seeking opportunities in Hungary via The Independent.
It is noted that the former president’s eldest child arrived in Budapest on Thursday morning on an invitation from the Budapest Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He had a meeting with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and gave a talk entitled “The World According to Donald Trump Jr.,” an event first reported by Hungarian journalist Szabolcs Panyi.
MCC's income is mostly coming from dividends of its (Hungarian oil company) MOL stocks, which in return is making record profits from trading with Russian oil.
It'd be extremely interesting to find out about Donald Trump Jr's speaking fee & who is covering his trip for how much. https://t.co/06GIzqb7HE
— Szabolcs Panyi (@panyiszabolcs) June 11, 2024
Trump Jr’s visit was mainly for discussions about “the future of Hungarian-American relations, the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war, and opportunities for peace creation,” according to Zoltan Kovacs, spokesperson for Orbán’s office.
Multiple legal experts stated that the foreign policy discussions between Trump Jr — who is not employed by the US government and a foreign prime minister raise questions about the Logan Act, which prohibits unauthorized diplomatic activity in certain circumstances.
Trump Jr. met with Orbán to discuss immigration, Russia’s war in Ukraine, and US-Hungarian relations — following in his father’s footsteps. The former president met with Orbán in March.
However, Kim Scheppele, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs at Princeton University and Faculty Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Law School stated that this raises legal questions about Trump Jr’s role.
“There is an interesting US legal question about whether private citizens can attempt to influence US foreign policy by negotiating with foreign countries,” Scheppele told The Independent. “The Logan Act makes this illegal.”
Specifically, Trump Jr, who does not hold any government office, spoke with Orbán regarding US foreign policy as it relates to Ukraine.
An example of a Logan Act violation that could have taken place during those discussions, Baker added, would be if “Trump Jr encouraged Orbán not to release the funds” or encouraged him “to go on blocking the EU’s funds for Ukraine.”
