Trump Reaches $375M Deal to Sell DC Hotel
A new report in the Wall Street Journal says that Donald Trump has finally reached a deal to unload his troubled hotel in Washington, DC. Miami-based investment firm CGI Merchant Group is in contract to acquire the lease on the hotel for $375 million, according to the WSJ.
The Trump International Hotel is in the historic former Post Office building a few blocks from the White House that the Trump Organization leased from the U.S. government. The hotel had been a popular gathering spot for Trump supporters and foreign dignitaries.
The newspaper said CGI Merchant Group intends to remove the Trump name and has reached an agreement with Hilton (HLT.N) Worldwide Holdings to have the property managed and branded by Hilton’s Waldorf Astoria group.
I didn’t have A-Rod buying Trump’s DC hotel on my bingo card https://t.co/bw0khq8ZwT
— Alex Weprin (@alexweprin) November 14, 2021
Last month, the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform said newly obtained government documents raised “troubling” questions about the hotel. According to the Democratic-controlled committee, Trump reported that the hotel earned him more than $150 million during his time in office but actually lost more than $70 million.
Trump Hotel DC… pic.twitter.com/zYbFDXvbv7
— Dana deChaby-DNA (@DNAGUITAR7) November 14, 2021
The committee found that the hotel received more than $3.7 million in payments from foreign governments – equal to more than 7,400 nights at the hotel, raising a potential conflict of interest. When he took office, Trump resigned from his companies but transferred his assets to a trust run by his sons, allowing him to still benefit financially from the DC hotel and his other businesses.
“The Trump Hotel DC stood as a bright neon sign telling foreign countries and moneyed interests how to bribe the president and a stark reminder to Americans that his decisions as president were just as likely to be about his bottom line as about our interests.” https://t.co/a8sGaRB5Bo
— Robert Maguire (@RobertMaguire_) November 14, 2021
In 2019, the inspector general of the General Services Administration (GSA) said the agency “ignored the Constitution” when deciding to maintain the lease of the building to the hotel after Trump was elected to the White House. The documents released by the Oversight Committee showed the hotel received millions from foreign governments in payments and loan deferral, which Trump did not disclose, raising questions about potential conflicts of interest during his time in office. The GSA, which manages federal buildings and land, awarded the lease for the Old Post Office building in 2012. Trump opened the hotel in 2016, when he was the Republican nominee for president.
In case you missed it: This week my office got good news in our lawsuit against Donald Trump’s DC hotel and inaugural committee. We’re going to trial. https://t.co/cy5ZfBwHUw
— AG Karl A. Racine (@AGKarlRacine) November 13, 2021
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