Former President Donald Trump's fortune took a major hit while he was in office, according to new documents released by the House Oversight and Reform Committee.
The documents show—contrary to Trump's claims, the Trump International Hotel—located in the Old Post Office Building in downtown Washington, D.C., accumulated losses in excess of $70 million.
Financial statements reveal the Trump International Hotel incurred net losses of $17.7 million for the fiscal year ending in August 31, 2017; $13.5 million in 2018; $17.8 million in 2019; and $22.3 million in 2020.
These losses proved so taxing for Trump he was forced to pull at least $24 million out of a holding company to aid the hotel.
He would later work out a favorable deal with Deutsche Bank allowing him to delay making payments on a $170 million loan he'd personally guaranteed.
However, federally mandated public financial disclosures from 2016 through 2020 tell a different story. In these, Trump claimed the hotel generated more than $150 million in revenue.
The House Oversight and Reform Committee's investigation also revealed Trump did not donate $4 million to the United States Treasury from foreign governments who had rented rooms at the hotel.
The donations Trump did make to the Treasury were inaccurately reported, only amounting to a fraction of the actual income the hotel generated.
The news did not surprise critics of the former President, who have long accused him of shoddy business practices and trying to profit off the presidency.
But much like his failed casinos, his lack of business acumen stopped him from making money on a sure thing.
Trump has long been accused of violating the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, which bars U.S. officials, elected or appointed, from accepting gifts or payments from foreign entities without receiving Congressional approval.
For instance, a 2017 lawsuit filed by the attorneys general of Maryland and Washington, D.C. contended Trump was not only profiting from the Trump International Hotel but foreign leaders leveraged bookings and parties at the space to curry favor with him while he was in office.
The struggles of the Trump International Hotel are only the latest development in the story of Trump's financial troubles.
Last week, Forbes reported Trump is no longer on the Forbes list of America's richest people.
According to Forbes 400, Trump's fortune dropped to $2.5 billion, which is $400 million short of the cutoff needed to make the list.
Forbes observed Trump can only blame himself for falling off the list, noting his refusal to comply with requests from federal ethics officials to divest himself from his real estate assets ultimately cost him billions.
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U.S. Mint
