The Hill reports:
A nonpartisan watchdog group has filed complaints against President Trump, his campaign and the publisher of The National Enquirer, alleging that they violated campaign finance laws over the payment of a rumor about Trump.
Common Cause filed complaints with the Justice Department and the Federal Election Commission after The Associated Press reported that American Media, Inc. had paid a former Trump doorman $30,000 for a rumor that Trump had a child with a housekeeper at one of his properties.
The group claims that the payment to the doorman was made to influence the outcome of the 2016 presidential election, and was therefore an illegal in-kind payment to Trump’s campaign. The complaints also allege that the campaign didn’t report the payment as either a contribution or an expenditure as required under campaign finance law.