D.C. attorney general sues Trump inaugural committee over $1 million booking at president’s hotel
By Jonathan O'Connell
Jan. 22, 2020 at 9:44 a.m. EST
D.C. Attorney General Karl A. Racine sued President Trump’s inaugural committee and business Wednesday, alleging that the committee violated its nonprofit status by spending more than $1 million to book a ballroom at Trump’s D.C. hotel that its staff knew was overpriced and that it barely used.
During the lead-up to Trump’s January 2017 inauguration, the committee booked the hotel ballroom for $175,000 a day plus more than $300,000 in food and beverage costs, over the objections of its own event planner.
The committee was formed to organize the events around the inauguration, but Racine alleges it instead “abandoned this purpose and violated District law when it wasted approximately $1 million of charitable funds in overpayment for the use of event space at the Trump hotel.”
“These charges were unreasonable and improperly served to enrich” Trump’s business, reads the complaint. He alleges that Trump and his daughter, Ivanka Trump, were likely aware of the charges, based on documents Racine subpoenaed from the committee and the Trump Organization.
D.C. law requires that nonprofit organizations not operate for the purpose of generating profits for private individuals. In the civil suit, Racine, a Democrat, asked for an order from D.C. Superior Court directing that the money be returned and given to charities promoting civic engagement.
more:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/dc-attorney-general-sues-trump-inaugural-committee-over-1-million-booking-at-presidents-hotel/2020/01/22/aa4ffab6-3c90-11ea-b90d-5652806c3b3a_story.html?utm_campaign=news_alert_revere&utm_medium=email&utm_source=alert&wpisrc=al_news__alert-national--alert-politics--alert-local-politics&wpmk=1
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