$137 million in revenue and other summations

Jan 21, 2021

Four years of a U.S. president keeping his business interests, by the numbers

1100 Pennsylvania isn’t going anywhere, but Donald J. Trump did. Here’s a look at what we know—so far—about what happens when a U.S. president retains his business interests, including a hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue?

$137 million: Revenue from his D.C. hotel that Trump reported as president

Reminder: Trump’s disclosures report revenue, not profits. So while his take-home likely was lower, these figures do provide insight on how much customers paid the president’s D.C. hotel.

2017: $40.4 million
2018: $40.8 million
2019: $40.5 million
2020: $15.1 million

33: Foreign governments with representatives spotted at the Trump Hotel D.C.

Afghanistan, Albania, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Cyprus, Ecuador, Egypt, Georgia, Greece, India, Italy, Kosovo, Kuwait, Malaysia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, South Korea, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom (select the link for 1100 Pennsylvania’s documentation)

$2.5 million and counting: U.S. government spending at Trump properties

“Trump’s company billed the government at least $2.5 million. Here are the key charges.” by David A. Fahrenthold for The Washington Post. This number is certain to increase as the government responds to Freedom of Information Act requests.

29: Members of Trump’s cabinet spotted at his D.C. hotel (out of a total of 38)

Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Attorney General William Barr, Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, Small Business Administration Administrator Linda McMahon, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, Secretary of Labor Alex Acosta, Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson, Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert Wilkie, Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly, Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen, Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler, Small Business Administration Administrator Linda McMahon, Small Business Administration Administrator Linda McMahon, Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, and Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe (select the link for 1100 Pennsylvania’s documentation)

$21.9 million: Campaign spending at Trump properties since the 2016 cycle

Figures per ProPublica’s FEC itemizer. Top spenders include

Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. (his campaign): $12 million
Trump Victory (joint fundraising committee for the Trump campaign and Republican National Committee): $4.8 million
Republican National Committee: $2.7 million
America First Action, Inc (pro-Trump super PAC): $602,000
Great American Committee (super PAC affiliated with Vice President Mike Pence): $238,000
Protect the House (joint fundraising committee for Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and the National Republican Congressional Committee): $233,000
Senate Leadership Fund (PAC affiliated with Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY)): $94,500

97: Trump visits to Trump properties during the COVID-19 pandemic

In one of his last acts as president, Trump arrived at Mar-a-Lago Wednesday morning. Per 1100 Pennsylvania’s tally, as president Trump called on Trump properties 97 times since Chinese officials first disclosed an outbreak of flu-like symptoms on Dec. 31, 2019 (for multi-night stays, 1100 Pennsylvania counts each day as a visit).

According to Johns Hopkins, COVID-19 has killed 408,382 people in the United States.

8: Trump political appointees who celebrated their marriage at his D.C. hotel

Kellyanne Conway staffer Sarah Trevor and trip director in the executive office of the president William Russell, assistant to the president Omarosa Manigault Newman, White House policy advisor Emily Newman, special assistant to the vice president Zach Bauer and senior policy advisor at the Federal Housing Finance Agency Meghan Patenaude, and special assistant to the president Stephen Miller and Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary Katie Rose Waldman (select the link for 1100 Pennsylvania’s documentation)

9: Minimum number of Trump clemency recipients who paid the president or otherwise helped him profit via his businesses

Joe Arpaio, Steve Bannon, Rod Blagojevich, Dinesh D’Souza, Michael Flynn, Bernard Kerik, Glen S. Moss, Hillel “Helly” Nahmad, and Roger Stone (per 1100 Pennsylvania’s previous reporting with Moss and Nahmad per The Washington Post and Broidy via McClatchy)

36: U.S. Senators spotted at the Trump Hotel D.C. or whose campaigns spent money there (all Republicans except Manchin)

Thirty-five of the 65 Republican to have served in the Senate while Donald Trump was president helped him profit from his D.C. hotel. One Democrat did likewise (Manchin). These U.S. Senators either have campaigns or committees that directly paid the U.S. president’s business or were spotted at the hotel: John Barrasso (R–WY), Marsha Blackburn (R–TN), Roy Blunt (R–MO), John Boozman (R–AR), Bill Cassidy (R–LA), John Cornyn (R–TX), Tom Cotton (R–AR), Mike Crapo (R–ID), Ted Cruz (R–TX), Jodi Ernst (R–IA), Cory Gardner (R–CO), Lindsey Graham (R–SC), Chuck Grassley (R–IA), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Josh Hawley (R–MO), John Hoeven (R–ND), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R–MS), James Inhofe (R–OK), Ron Johnson (R–WI), John Kennedy (R–LA), Kelly Loeffler (R–GA), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Mitch McConnell (R–KY), Lisa Murkowski (R–AK), Rand Paul (R–KY), David Perdue (R–GA), Pat Roberts (R–KS), Mike Rounds (R–SD), Marco Rubio (R–FL), Ben Sasse (R–NE), Rick Scott (R–FL), Tim Scott (R–SC), Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Dan Sullivan (R–AK), John Thune (R–SD), and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) (select the link for 1100 Pennsylvania’s documentation)

0: Visits as president to D.C restaurants other than the steakhouse in his own hotel

“Yep, Donald Trump only visited one DC restaurant in four years” by Jessica Sidman for Washingtonian

Notable sightings

A glimpse of the foreign officials, government employees, politicians, lobbyists, and the like who patronize or appear at Trump businesses. Most people shown here have reasons to want to influence the former president, rely on his good graces for their livelihoods, or should have been providing oversight. Additionally, high-profile guests serve as draws for paying customers.

1100 Pennsylvania found no photos of noteworthy guests over inauguration geotagged to the Trump Hotel D.C. on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Police officers and National Guard troops hung out in the Trump Hotel D.C.’s lobby according to photos employees shared.

Diamond dealer Samer Halimeh described his work on Tiffany Trump’s engagement ring (shown here at the Trump Hotel DC) as “a Presidential flavor.” In response to 1100 Pennsylvania’s inquiry about what he meant in this promotional photo, a representative of Halimeh described his word choice as [bold added] “a simple adjective meaning absolutely nothing and carrying no underlying messages.”

Former president Trump spoke to his customers and staffers upon arriving at his resort-cum-home, Mar-a-Lago.

Other Trump Organization news

“Trump financial disclosure reveals a business upended by the pandemic” by Ben Protess, Steve Eder, and Michael H. Keller for The New York Times
“Trump investigators have tax records even before court order” by Greg Farrell and Greg Storh for Bloomberg
“Morgan Lewis drops Trump as client as NY tax probe continues” by Chris Opfer for Bloomberg law
“Florida-based bank announces it is closing Trump’s accounts” by David A. Fahrenthold for The Washington Post
“These five letters are hurtingTrump Tower” by Alby Gallun for Crain’s
“First minister urged to use legal powers to investigate finances behind Donald Trump’s ‘toxic brand’” by Martyn McLaughlin for The Scotsman
“Trump extended Secret Service protection to his adult children and three top officials as he left office” by Carol D. Leonnig and Nick Miroff for The Washington Post
“Cy Vance raises almost nothing for reelection as Manhattan DA candidates amass war chests and Trump probe deepens” by Josefa Velasquez and Rachel Holiday Smith for The City
The steakhouse in the Trump Hotel D.C. is set to reopen Friday with the easing of the city’s COVID-19 restrictions.
“At 9 a.m. on February 17, the former Trump Plaza hotel and casino will be wiped off the Atlantic City skyline, the city’s mayor announced Thursday,” reported Will Yakowicz of Forbes
“BrewDog troll Donald Trump by launching petition to rename Prestwick Airport ‘Joe Biden International’’’ by Rosalind Erskine for The Scotsman
“Trump Jr., Guilfoyle moving in? Admirals Cove residents not thrilled with the idea” by Christine Stapelton and Alexandra Clough for The Palm Beach Post

Reference section

Links to rundowns of developments in the House’s investigations and lawsuits, reference sheets for some of 1100 Pennsylvania’s previous reporting, and articles that provide the background on why all of this matters. The date published or last updated is in parentheses.

Trackers

House investigations (Dec. 20, 2020)
Lawsuits (Dec. 17, 2020)
Breakdown of judges’ rulings by political party of presidents who nominated them (July 13, 2020)
Health inspections (Oct. 6, 2020)
COVID-19 bailouts and charity (Nov. 30, 2020)

Notable hotel customers

Foreign governments with representatives spotted at the Trump Hotel D.C.: 33 (Sept. 22, 2020)
Trump cabinet members spotted at the Trump Hotel D.C.: 28 of 37 (Jan 21, 2021)
U.S. Senators who’ve supported the Trump Hotel D.C.: 35 of 65 Republicans, one Democrat (Jan. 21, 2021)
House Judiciary members who’ve supported the Trump Hotel D.C.: Seven of 17 Republicans, no Democrats (Sept. 25, 2020)
House Intelligence members who’ve supported the Trump Hotel D.C.: Four of eight Republicans, no Democrats (June 1, 2020)
House Oversight members who’ve supported the Trump Hotel D.C.: Nine of 17 Republicans, no Democrats (Aug. 2, 2020)
House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management who’ve supported the Trump Hotel D.C.: Four out of six Republicans, one Democrat (July 1, 2020)
Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R–CA) found Trump’s hotels competitive only after Trump’s election (Sept. 12, 2019)
Rudy Giuliani at the Trump Hotel D.C: A retrospective (April 30, 2019)

Summaries

“Stay to play: Inside the sordid history of Trump’s D.C. hotel—And why the president’s prized property could be headed for a reckoning” by your correspondent for Mother Jones (September 2020)
“Power tripping in the swamp: How Trump’s D.C. hotel swallowed Washington
The MAGA social scene is a movable feast, but its dark heart resides within the Old Post Office Building, where the Trump Org operates under a mercenary charter” by your correspondent for Vanity Fair (October 2019)
“Inside the world’s most controversial hotel: The hotel that was expected to take its place among the crown jewels of D.C.’s travel scene has become a magnet for protestors, a West Wing Annex, and—possibly—the center of a constitutional crisis.” by your correspondent for Condé Nast Traveler (May 2018)

Upcoming key dates

Sept. 23, 2019—House Judiciary Committee hearing “Presidential corruption: Emoluments and profiting off the presidency” (postponed, not yet rescheduled)

Thanks for reading! If you like what you’ve read, tell someone.

If you’ve been forwarded this newsletter, subscribe at 1100pennsylvania.substack.com to support independent journalists dedicated to who’s paying the president.

Give a gift subscription

If you’re a paid subscriber and would like to post a comment—or if you would like to view comments from paid subscribers—click the comment button.

1100 Pennsylvania