Donald J. Trump, as president, continues to make millions -- including on his Washington D.C. hotel.
That’s according to his latest financial disclosure released by the federal Office of Government Ethics Friday evening. The document, an imperfect window into Trump’s assets, debt and income, is the third of its kind that he’s released since announcing his candidacy for the presidency in 2015.
The release comes as Trump is under investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller, a probe that comes amid larger federal investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 election and whether Trump campaign advisers colluded in any interference. By law, Trump could have postponed releasing the 51-page disclosure document, the first he has filed as president, until 2018.
The disclosure covers income for about 15 1/2 months ending in mid-April, according to disclosure rules. That means it includes income from the first three months of his presidency, a period in which his newly opened Washington hotel became an attraction for his supporters and for foreign diplomats, while his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, doubled its members’ annual dues to $200,000.
The Trump International Hotel Washington D.C., which opened in September, listed hotel-related revenue of $19.7 million, according to the form. Mar-a-Lago, where Trump has spent weekends during his presidency, generated $37 million during the reporting period, an increase from $30 million during a similar period, as reported last year.
Trump drew scrutiny and criticism after he departed from roughly 40 years of tradition for major-party candidates by declining to release any of his tax returns. He has said he’s under audit, and won’t release the documents until the audit is over. Tax experts say there’s no law that would prevent releasing his returns, even while audits are pending. His spokesmen have also noted the extensiveness of his financial disclosures.
The president has retained his ownership interest in his various companies -- another departure from tradition. Unlike previous occupants of the Oval Office, Trump neither divested his assets nor set up a blind trust.
Two days later, he resigned from 476 businesses, including companies active in Brazil, Canada and China, according to a document released by the Trump Organization.
Trump’s political opponents have questioned whether more disclosure of his personal finances would reveal any ties to Russian oligarchs.
Trump has repeatedly denied having any financial ties to Russia, and the documents are unlikely to reflect any. In the filing, Trump mostly lists limited liability corporations and partnerships that he owns. He isn’t required to list where the entities derive their income.
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