Donald Trump was registered to lobby on behalf of Trump Entertainment Resorts Holdings, the casino operator in which he was then a minority shareholder, and received $4,000 per month for the work. | AP Photo Lobbyist-bashing Trump was once a lobbyist

Before Donald Trump proposed new restrictions on lobbyists, he was one.

Trump was a registered lobbyist in Rhode Island from April 2006 through the end of that year, according to state records reviewed by POLITICO.


The businessman was registered to lobby on behalf of Trump Entertainment Resorts Holdings, the casino operator in which he was then a minority shareholder, and received $4,000 per month for the work, according to state records.

At the time, Trump was promoting a proposed casino in the town of Johnston, according to a brief item in the April 25, 2006, edition of the Providence Journal.

The journal reported, “One of Trump's operatives filed an application and paid the $5 registration fee that entitles him to walk the State House corridors, with a lobbyist badge on his jacket.”

A Trump spokesman told the newspaper Trump registered, “Because he is becoming personally involved in direct communications with people and officials in Rhode Island.” No casino ever came of Trump's lobbying.

On the campaign trail, Trump has not been shy about describing his past use of lobbyists and campaign contributions to influence government decisions, but he has never mentioned his own lobbying work, which had been lost to recent history.

On Monday, Trump proposed a raft of reforms to curb Washington’s influence industry, including a lifetime ban on White House officials working for foreign governments and the closing of loopholes that allowed de facto lobbyists to avoid registering as such.

Over the course of his campaign, Trump has appointed several lobbyists, including former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, to key posts. Former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski has also worked as a lobbyist, obtaining stimulus funds for a client even as he publicly railed against the stimulus in his work for the Koch brothers-backed American for Prosperity.

Representatives of Trump’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.