House Democrats are accusing former President Donald Trump of exploiting taxpayers during his presidency by charging the Secret Service exorbitant rates for stays at his Washington, D.C. hotel. A recent report from the House Oversight Committee referred to Trump’s actions as “a glimpse into President Trump’s domestic emoluments rackets and pay-to-play schemes.”
The U.S. Constitution’s emoluments clause restricts presidents from profiting from foreign governments and prohibits them from accepting money from the U.S. government beyond their salary. The report claims that Trump violated these rules by imposing inflated hotel charges on the Secret Service, who were stationed at the Trump International Hotel to protect his family while they stayed there. That hotel has since been sold and rebranded as the Waldorf Astoria.
The report mentions Eric Trump’s 2019 claim that Secret Service agents stayed at Trump properties “for free.” In reality, the agents often paid significantly higher rates compared to other guests at the hotel. According to the findings, “Trump treated the Secret Service not as a gratis friend and guest but as a ‘captive customer,’ exploiting them for profit.”
One instance highlighted is a $600 room rate approved for Secret Service agents, despite a monthly per diem of $201. This was for a stay coinciding with an event involving Eric Trump and his wife in November 2017. Interestingly, that same night, over 80 rooms in the hotel were rented at rates under $600, including some rented to the Inner Mongolia Yitai Coal Co. at $338.85 each.
The report reveals additional examples of inflated Secret Service charges at the hotel, including a staggering $895 per night during a stay linked to Eric Trump in February 2018, even as other rooms were available for as low as $150.50.
Moreover, the report accuses Trump of breaching the emoluments clause by charging foreign dignitaries and others for stays at his properties while he was in office. It notes, “In some cases, President Trump was raking in more from the U.S. government in domestic emoluments than he was from foreign entities for constitutionally prohibited foreign emoluments.”
To delve deeper, you can read the full 57-page report below: