The State Department is apparently spending money to officially promote Mar-a-Lago
The United States embassy in the U.K. is apparently promoting President Trump's "winter White House" on its official webpage, sparking renewed concerns about Trump's potential conflicts of interest. "Trump is not the first president to have access to Mar-a-Lago as a Florida retreat, but he is the first one to use it," reads the article, which was originally published on ShareAmerica, the Department of State's "platform for sharing compelling stories and images that spark discussion and debate on important topics like democracy, freedom of expression, innovation, entrepreneurship, education, and the role of civil society."
"By visiting this 'winter White House,' Trump is belatedly fulfilling the dream of Mar-a-Lago's original owner and designer," the article goes on, claiming its builder, Marjorie Merriweather Post, "willed the estate to the U.S. government, intending it to be used as a winter White House for the U.S. president to entertain visiting foreign dignitaries."
Hillary Clinton's former national spokesman, Josh Schwerin, criticized the webpage on Twitter: "The State Department is spending money to promote Mar-a-Lago," he tweeted. "Can we really continue to ask a coal miner in [West Virginia] or a single mom in Detroit to pay for promoting Mar-a-Lago?"
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The Mar-a-Lago club's initiation fee doubled to $200,000 after Trump was elected, and Trump's frequent visits have been criticized as a potential conflict of interest by many observers. "Trump has an incentive to host an event at Mar-a-Lago (personal financial gain) that runs directly counter to what would be best for the country's security (hosting the event at the White House or an otherwise secure location)," writes The Atlantic. "Not only that, part of the appeal of Mar-a-Lago is that guests will have a front-row ticket to see Trump at work."
