ZCZC
BFF-13
US-POLITICS-TRUMP-HOTELS
Trump company ditches plans for new hotels: NYT
NEW YORK, Feb 15, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – The company overseeing President Donald
Trump’s business dealings has dropped plans to develop two new lines of
hotels, citing what it calls a hostile political climate, The New York Times
reported Thursday.
In 2016 and 2017 the Trump Organization announced plans for the two new
brands, called Scion and American Idea, which were to be more affordable than
the usual flashy Trump hotel properties.
But they never really got off the ground and only one partner, in
Mississippi, had signed a deal.
Now, the Trump Organization has shelved plans for these hotels, probably
for the rest of the Trump presidency, the Times said.
The company is under investigation by federal prosecutors and Congress. And
a former employee, Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen, is bound
for prison.
“We live in a climate where everything will be used against us, whether by
the fake news or by Democrats who are only interested in presidential
harassment and wasting everyone’s time, barraging us with nonsense letters,”
Trump’s son Eric said in a statement, according to the Times.
“We already have the greatest properties in the world and if we have to
slow down our growth for the time being, we are happy to do it.”
The Trump Organization is family owned and thus not obliged to release
information on its earnings or dealings.
BSS/AFP/MR/ 1204 hrs