Charities cancelling Mar-a-Lago galas
WASHINGTON • In the past seven days — since President Donald Trump said there were “fine people” among those marching in a violenceplagued Unite the Right demonstration in Charlottesville, Va. — his Mar-a-Lago Club in Florida has been deserted by 18 charities that planned to use its ballrooms for fundraisers.
Those charities are key customers of Trump’s club: They can pay as much as $275,000 for a single night’s revelry. They also are an important marker of prestige in Palm Beach: When big galas are going on in Mar-a-Lago’s ballrooms, the island’s elite must come to Trump, gathering at a club that doubles as his home. Even as president, Trump has revelled in this role: He has dropped in to glad-hand and address the crowds.
Now, this exodus of customers has highlighted an unexpected consequence of the president’s decision to keep ownership of his businesses while in the White House.
That decision has made Trump money, certainly. It allowed businesses and governments seeking the president’s favour to funnel him money through his D.C. hotel. But it has also driven away customers.
The list of 18 includes 12 charities that had planned galas or other large dinner events. Some of the biggest charity galas can attract 600 people or more and raise more than $1.5 million in an evening.
The latest charity to move its dinner event was the Gateway for Cancer Research, which announced its decision on Tuesday.
“Gateway for Cancer Research has decided to withdraw from Mar-a-Lago as a venue for its March 2018 St. Patrick’s Day event.”
Even before last week, Mar-a-Lago was facing an unusually slow season. It had only 16 galas on the schedule for the winter, compared with 21 the year before and 26 in its best year. Then, after the president’s comments about Charlottesville, there was a new wave of cancellations, beginning with the Cleveland Clinic Florida last Thursday.
Others cancelling galas or dinner events include the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the American Cancer Society, the Susan G. Komen breast cancer charity and the Autism Project of Palm Beach County.