The Trump International Hotel in Washington DC is one of a number of Trump properties enjoying lavish spending by political groups (Jonathan Newton / The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Federal political committees have spent more than $20 million at businesses owned by President Donald Trump since the 2008 cycle, according to an OpenSecrets analysis of Federal Election Commission filings.

Roughly 99 percent of that money has come since the start of the 2016 cycle, when Trump announced his bid for president and began spending campaign money at his own properties. Over that time, Trump campaign-affiliated committees have funneled about $16.8 million to Trump-owned businesses, the bulk of the spending at his properties.

Republican political campaigns and PACs have spent just under $1.8 million at Trump-owned businesses in the 2020 cycle thus far. Most of that comes from the Trump campaign, but 48 different Republican members of Congress also spent donor dollars this cycle through their affiliated political committees.

As with the 2016 cycle, the Trump campaign is the top spender. The Republican National Committee and pro-Trump outside groups also pour in big dollars as they host fundraising events at Trump properties.

Former Rep. Sean Duffy (R-Wis.), a staunch Trump supporter, is one of the top spenders this cycle. Before he retired from Congress in September, Duffy shelled out more than $17,000 at Trump’s Washington, D.C., hotel for “travel,” according to his third-quarter FEC report.

A number of Trump allies, including Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) and Greg Pence (R-Ind.), Vice President Mike Pence’s brother, have spent campaign cash at Trump-owned businesses in 2019. Lawmakers facing tough reelection battles in 2020, such as Sens. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) also patronized Trump properties with campaign money.

That spending won’t stop any time soon, as Senate Republicans are hosting a multi-day retreat at Trump’s Washington, D.C., hotel in early November, the Intercept reported.

Trump came under fire recently when he decided to host the Group of 7 Summit at his Miami-area Trump National Doral golf resort. Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney defended the decision, arguing that the facility was best suited for the event, but Trump backed down from the plan a few days later on Twitter.

Defending the original decision again in an interview with Fox News, Mulvaney said Trump was surprised by the pushback from Republican congressmen.

“I honestly think what you saw in the tweet was real,” Mulvaney said. “He was honestly surprised at the level of pushback. At the end of the day, you know, he still considers himself to be in the hospitality business, and he saw an opportunity to take the biggest leaders from around the world and he wanted to put on the absolute best show, the best visit that he possibly could.”

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Doral isn’t the preferred location for political committees, or for Trump campaign committees, for that matter. The Florida resort got nearly $85,000 from the RNC this year, but no cash from any other political committees.

In the 2020 cycle, Trump’s Washington hotel is the highest-paid venue, followed by Mar-A-Lago, which received the largest single payment this cycle — nearly $215,000 from Trump Victory.

Trump properties weren’t a preferred location for Washington lawmakers until after Trump became president. Non-Trump campaign entities — excluding the Trump campaign, RNC and pro-Trump super PAC America First Action — spent less than $227,000 from the 2008 to 2016 cycles. Since Trump became president, non-Trump campaign committees have spent more than $1.3 million.

Trump recently said he has lost billions by becoming president, and his estimated net worth according to personal financial disclosures has dropped since its peak in 2016.

But that isn’t preventing two federal lawsuits alleging that Trump is violating a section of the Constitution that prohibits presidents from accepting gifts from foreign actors. Trump continues to hold more than $130 million in foreign assets around the world, and his Washington hotel is a top venue for foreign leaders aiming to curry influence with the president.

“You people with this phony emoluments clause,” Trump told reporters on Monday, arguing that George Washington ran businesses while president and rhetorically asking whether President Barack Obama discussed his book deal before leaving office.

FEC-reported spending at Trump properties is likely just the tip of the iceberg, as it doesn’t include spending from foreign actors, non-elected members of government or state-level lawmakers. A recent analysis from Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington found that 1,494 government officials have visited Trump properties.

Trump puts profits from his businesses in a revocable trust, which allows Trump to take home income at any time.

For more information about political spending at Trump properties, click here. The page will be updated with third-quarter data in the near future. Researcher Andrew Mayersohn contributed to this report.



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