Report: Trump Pressured Kuwait Into Holding Event At His Washington D.C. Hotel

Last updated on July 17th, 2023 at 09:43 pm

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A new report from ThinkProgress claims that just days after the Nov. 8 presidential election, Donald Trump’s organization put political pressure on the Embassy of Kuwait to move its National Day celebration to the president-elect’s D.C. hotel.

ThinkProgress notes that Kuwait’s embassy usually holds the event at a Four Seasons hotel in Georgetown, but suddenly canceled its contract with that hotel after the election.

More from the report:

A source tells ThinkProgress that the Kuwaiti embassy, which has regularly held the event at the Four Seasons in Georgetown, abruptly canceled its reservation after members of the Trump Organization pressured the ambassador to hold the event at the hotel owned by the president-elect. The source, who has direct knowledge of the arrangements between the hotels and the embassy, spoke to ThinkProgress on the condition of anonymity because the individual was not authorized to speak publicly. ThinkProgress was also able to review documentary evidence confirming the source’s account.

In the early fall, the Kuwaiti Embassy signed a contract with the Four Seasons. But after the election, members of the Trump Organization contacted the Ambassador of Kuwait, Salem Al-Sabah, and encouraged him to move his event to Trump’s D.C. hotel, the source said.

Kuwait has now signed a contract with the Trump International Hotel, the source said, adding that a representative with the embassy described the decision as political.

This is just one of several examples of how Trump is already using the power of the presidency to help his businesses cash in.

ThinkProgress notes that getting Kuwait to sign a contract with one of Trump’s hotels isn’t just some one-and-done deal. Instead, it’s “part of a larger effort by the Trump Organization to lure lucrative diplomats to the Trump International Hotel.”

Other countries, like Bahrain and Azerbaijan, are doing similar things as a way to hopefully “gain access and favor with the incoming Trump administration.”

Drain the swamp? Give me a break.

Those who voted for Trump because he was an outsider who would get rid of corruption surely must see that the president-elect’s entire campaign was a scam. Not only is Trump maintaining the swamp of special interests in Washington, but he’s filling it in a whole new way.

It’s becoming clear that Trump’s campaign-season rhetoric about creating a government that serves the people was bluster meant only to serve his own goal of becoming president.

Once he is sworn in next month, he will likely use the presidency in a similar way – to enrich himself and his own interests.

Sean Colarossi

Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.