Attorney General William Barr is reportedly hosting a blowout holiday bash at Trump's hotel
It looks like Attorney General William Barr wants to have his family party at a family business.
The Department of Justice head has booked his 200-person holiday bash at President Trump's hotel in Washington, D.C., documents obtained by The Washington Post reveal. It'll reportedly feature an open bar and buffet and be held in the hotel's Presidential Ballroom, likely netting the Trump's more than $30,000 in revenue, the Post estimates.
Barr booked what a contract listed as a "family holiday party" for Dec. 8, and will likely be his traditional combination of holiday activities and an Irish- or Scottish-music-filled cèilidh, per the Post. But since Barr is paying for the private event himself, it doesn't quite cross into the ethically ambiguous territory of hosting an official administration event at the Trump Hotel. The Trump administration has generally avoided booking official events at the hotel and encouraging world leaders from staying there, but that hasn't stopped Saudi-funded lobbyists and even Trump-tied events from filling the hotel. And even though Trump has detached himself from the business, he still profits from it, meaning he'll likely benefit in some way from the Barr party.
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A DOJ official told the Post that "career ethics officials were consulted," but didn't determine ethics rules would stop Barr from having his party at the Trump Hotel. Another official said Barr chose the event only because other hotels in the area were booked. Read more at The Washington Post.
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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
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