'We’ve turned Trump Tower blue': Building that once bore Trump’s name now popular venue for Dems

16 December 2023

The Washington, DC building once known as the Trump International Hotel has been turned into one of the most popular gathering places for Democrats — particularly for well-heeled donors to President Joe Biden's reelection efforts.

Politico reports that the Waldorf Astoria in downtown DC is now the "unofficial headquarters for Biden’s moneyed supporters." It's a stark transition from its former status as the prime gathering place for former President Donald Trump's supporters up until 2022, when the Trump Organization sold the property to an investment group. One Democratic donor told Politico the Waldorf Astoria's new status as a fundraising venue for Democrats is 'like a f– you' to Trump.'

"The expression that a couple of people used was, ‘We’ve turned Trump Tower blue,'" said Chip Forrester, who is a member of the finance committee for the Biden Victory Fund National Finance Committee. The committee held its winter meeting at the Waldorf Astoria on Thursday, just blocks away from the White House.

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"It wasn’t lost on anyone that just a few short years ago this was jam packed full of Trump supporters," another meeting attendee told Politico.

In addition to Democratic donors, the Waldorf Astoria also occasionally plays host to former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama, who live in DC's Kalorama neighborhood. According to Politico, second gentleman Doug Emhoff is also frequently seen there, along with executive branch officials like Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

"I think a lot of people’s favorite part about the hotel is that it’s not owned by Donald Trump," Biden campaign spokesman Kevin Munoz said.

Indeed, when it was the Trump International Hotel, it was the premier venue for Trump's most diehard supporters. In 2020, journalist Ken Klippenstein wrote in The Nation that on the night of Trump's final State of the Union address, the hotel was packed with supporters clad in suits and ties with the occasional "smattering of red MAGA hats."

When the former president's real estate company still owned the hotel, it was associated with scandal. Deadline reported that when it was controlled by Democrats, the House Oversight Committee found that the Trump International Hotel accepted roughly $3.7 million in booking fees from representatives of foreign governments, "raising concerns about possible violations of the Constitution’s Foreign Emoluments Clause." In 2022, DC Attorney General Karl Racine announced a $750,000 settlement with the Trump Organization and Trump's inaugural committee, relating to allegations of the hotel overcharging for event space and in turn enriching the Trump family.

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