Says, “When A President Uses The Office For Personal Profit, That Is Not ‘Just The Way It Is,’ Despite What Trump Wants You To Believe”
On Thursday, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) joined Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) in introducing the Anti-Corruption Bureau Creation Act, landmark new legislation in the wake of the unprecedented corruption of the second Trump Administration.
The major new bill would establish a private right of action for the public and state Attorneys General to sue for recoveries and forfeitures from certain federal officials, including the President and Vice President, to get Americans money back that’s been taken by corruption. The Anti-Corruption Bureau Creation Act would also create the nation’s first independent federal agency dedicated to rooting out corruption across the executive branch and stopping presidents from turning public power into private profit.
The Senators announced the legislation at the Public Citizen “Combatting Corruption” forum. Since returning to office in 2025, Trump has taken in more than $2 billion, while his family has made more than $4 billion. At the same time, his signature “Big, Ugly Bill” delivered massive handouts to corporations and special interests while leaving working families to foot the bill.
“When a president uses the office for personal profit, that is not ‘just the way it is,’ despite what Trump wants you to believe,” said Senator Padilla. “With Trump, there’s clearly no effort to hide the corruption. That’s why I’m joining Leader Schumer on this new bill, empowering everyday Americans and state Attorneys General to be able to sue to take back every corrupt dollar that the president and the vice president or any future president or vice president makes through corruption while in office.”
“Trump has turned the presidency into the most profitable scam of his life, and Republicans have helped him cash every check—all while working families struggle to afford groceries, gas, housing, and healthcare,” said Leader Schumer. “While Republicans seem all too eager to cosign his behavior, Senate Democrats are committed to holding this country to a higher standard. Senate Democrats are fighting to create the first-ever independent Anti-Corruption Bureau with the power to follow the money, expose the corruption and claw back corrupt profits. No president should ever be allowed to treat the White House like a personal ATM.”
The new Anti-Corruption Bureau would have sweeping investigative, subpoena, oversight and enforcement powers to follow the money, expose corruption and hold even the most powerful public officials accountable. Its leadership, structure and financing would be insulated from presidential interference, ensuring that no administration could defund it, disable it or fire its leaders and leave it powerless. The legislation would also empower Americans and state Attorneys General to sue to recover money obtained through presidential corruption.
Specifically, the Anti-Corruption Bureau Creation Act would:
Create the nation’s first independent Anti-Corruption Bureau: Establish a new federal bureau led by a seven-member, Senate-confirmed board with fixed terms, strict independence protections and partisan-balance requirements.- Give the Bureau real teeth: Equip the Bureau with sweeping investigative, subpoena, oversight, enforcement and public-reporting powers.
- Claw back money obtained through corruption: Allow private plaintiffs, including state attorneys general, to sue in the name of the United States to recover money obtained through corruption by presidents, senior officials, key campaign figures and major government contractors.
- Bring federal anti-corruption enforcement under one roof: Consolidate the Federal Election Commission, Office of Government Ethics and Office of Special Counsel within the new Bureau.
- Prevent a president from disabling the watchdog: Establish a special three-judge division of the D.C. Circuit empowered to appoint temporary Bureau members when vacancies, obstruction or crises threaten its continued operation—ensuring that a president cannot render it powerless by removing its leaders or refusing to fill vacancies.
- Protect its funding from presidential retaliation: Create the Freedom From Influence Fund as a dedicated, self-financing source of revenue, preventing a president from using the budget process to starve the Bureau into submission.
In addition to Padilla and Schumer, the legislation is co-sponsored by Senators Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Andy Kim (D-N.J.). It is endorsed by Public Citizen, Common Cause, Campaign Legal Center, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washing (CREW), Protect Democracy, and Defend the Vote Action Fund.
Senator Padilla has fought back against the Trump Administration’s corruption. Earlier this month, he joined Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) in launching a new Senate Democratic anti-corruption initiative to expose how Trump’s rampant self-dealing is costing American families and to develop legislation that would prevent future presidents from using public office for personal profit. Padilla also led efforts to kill the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) “anti-weaponization” slush fund, and introduced the No Rewards for January 6 Rioters Act to prohibit use of federal funds to financially award them. Last year, Padilla demanded an independent investigation by the DOJ’s Inspector General into the Attorney General and the Department of Justice’s involvement in President Trump’s unconstitutional acquisition of a $400 million luxury plane from the Qatari government. Padilla and Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) introduced the Protecting Our Democracy Act to curb presidential abuses of power, strengthen checks and balances on the Executive Branch, and add additional guardrails to better protect American democracy.
Read more in the Sierra Sun Times