By Andy Sullivan
WASHINGTON – The U.S. government on Friday said it would allow former President Donald Trump’s company to sell the rights to a luxury hotel in Washington to a Hilton affiliate, clearing the way for Trump’s name to come down off a building that served as a flashpoint during his presidency.
The U.S. General Services Administration, which acts as the federal government’s landlord, said it approved the deal between the Trump Organization and CGI Merchant Group, a Miami investment firm that plans to operate the building as a Waldorf Astoria hotel.
Located in the historic Old Post Office Building four blocks from the White House, the Trump International Hotel served as a gathering point for his supporters and some foreign government officials during his presidency, and a sticking point for critics who said it violated ethics laws.
Trump’s company reached a deal to sell his rights to the property for a reported $375 million, which could net him a $100 million profit.
Democrats in Congress had urged GSA to cancel the lease before Trump could sell it, arguing that he may have provided a misleading picture of his finances when the government leased the property to him in 2013, before he ran for president.
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The Trump Organization and CGI Merchant Group did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Andy Sullivan; additional reporting by Caitlin Webber; Editing by Rami Ayyub and Alistair Bell)