News / Politics

Group accuses Trump of making mockery of US electoral system

Friday, 01 July 2016 12:04 AM [ Last Update: Friday, 01 July 2016 1:00 PM ]

Presumptive US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks to guests during a policy speech during a campaign stop at Alumisource on June 28, 2016 in Monessen, Pennsylvania. (AFP photo)

An advocacy group has filed a complaint with the US Federal Election Commission, accusing presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump of making a mockery of the electoral system.

“Donald Trump is making a mockery of our electoral system with these blatant violations of FEC law," said the American Democracy Legal Fund founded by David Brock, a longtime ally of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, The Hill newspaper reported on Thursday.

"Trump is using his run for office to fatten his wallet and promote his businesses, not to solve problems for American families. Donald Trump isn’t interested in ‘Making America Great Again’ because he’s too focused on making the Trump brand great again,” the fund's president Brad Woodhouse said in a statement.

The group accused Trump of “using funds from his presidential campaign to further his business and personal interests.”

“According to the Committee’s June campaign filing,” the complaint read, “nearly 20 percent of the funds that the Committee spent were expenditures for the use of properties owned by Mr. Trump or a member of his family. While Mr. Trump and his family are not precluded from receiving rental fees from the Committee for its use of their properties, the magnitude of the proportion of campaign funds spent to compensate Mr. Trump and his family calls for stricter scrutiny by the Commission of this practice.”

Trump's campaign has been marked by controversy from the beginning, including disparaging remarks about women, immigrants and Muslims.

But he succeeded in forcing all other Republican candidates to bow out from the 2016 race for the White House. The businessman from New York secured the majority of delegates needed to claim the presidential nomination in July.

In an interview with Press TV, US journalist Don DeBar said Trump’s campaign for the Republican nomination is aimed at promoting his vast business empire.

“Donald Trump as a candidate for president began and may still wind up being as a public relations stunt to improve the value of his brand,” said DeBar.

“Donald Trump is not the person that is presented to the world as a mega-millionaire American entrepreneur, Donald Trump is a brand,” he added.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk