The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
TRUMP TO HOST G-7 AT HIS DORAL RESORT
President Donald Trump intends to host next year’s Group of Seven conference at his Trump National Doral resort in Miami in June, the White House confirmed Thursday, a controversial decision certain to raise conflict-of-interest questions given the financial benefit to Trump’s business.
What it means
Trump first floated the idea of the Doral in August at the G-7 meeting in Biarritz, France, telling reporters that his property was far better than others his administration had considered, given its proximity to a major airport and the abundance of accommodations and meeting space on site.
Trump’s properties have hosted U.S. government officials before, and the company says it does not seek to make a profit off that business.
But even so, Doral is a major part of Trump’s portfolio: It provides more revenue to him than any other hotel or golf club.
Trump bought the 57-yearold Doral golf resort in 2012, taking out $125 million in loans from Deutsche Bank to finance the purchase. Since 2015, however, the 643-room club’s revenue and profits have both nose-dived, according to figures that the Trump Organization provided to Miami-Dade County last year.
Why it matters
The idea of hosting the G7 at Doral is controversial. Trump is already fighting three lawsuits suggesting that he is violating the Constitution’s emoluments clause, which prohibits U.S. officeholders from personally profiting from payments by foreign governments.
White House response
White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney told reporters that the decision would not represent a conflict, even if the event would be a major branding opportunity for Trump’s resorts.
“The president has pretty much made it clear that he doesn’t profit,” Mulvaney said. The resort would host the foreign delegations for the G-7 conference “at cost,” he said, adding that Doral was “far and away the best physical facility for this meeting.”
“There will be folks that will never get over that it’s a Trump property. We get that,” Mulvaney said. “He’s not making any money off of this, just like he’s not making any money from working here.”