Trump under fire for using presidential seal and office to promote golf course



Donald Trump's office appeared to use the presidential seal to push out promotional materials for his Florida golf course - and it didn't go down well.

The former president's office is granted $1 million annually to help with running costs and expenses, although generally speaking, this money isn't used to help finance personal business ventures.

Given that it is a tax-payer funded operation, using such funds to promote a golf course - as Mr Trump appears to have done - would be subject to public scrutiny, RawStory first reported.

"I [Mr Trump] have just spent millions of dollars on the Blue Monster golf course at Trump National Doral in the heart of Miami," the official statement read. "Incredible what has been created. The Blue Monster is one of the greatest courses in the world, and a favorite of PGA tour players."

"Check it out! Also, will be applying for 2,300 units of luxury housing, retail, and commercial space in Phase 1 at Doral. This is perhaps the most exciting development in the Country - and the Blue Monster course coupled with the Red, Gold, and Silver, are setting records!" it continued.

Mr Trump's Doral facility in Miami hasn't fared well over the past few years. Even prior to the pandemic, the resort's net income had fallen by 69 per cent since the former president's 2016 election victory.

These losses were naturally exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, as all of Mr Trump's properties took a major financial hit. Last year, Forbes reported that Doral's revenue crashed more than 40 per cent in 2020.

His documents show "golf resort related revenues" of $44.2 million, which is a decrease from $77.2 million the property made in 2019.

It's unclear if that's the main reason that Mr Trump appears to be using his presidential powers to promote the property. However, his apparent decision to do so certainly didn't go unnoticed online. As one Twitter user lamented: "Your tax dollars just paid for Trump to promote his golf course."

Others instead picked up on the fact that the promotional material was sent out on Martin Luther King Jr Day.

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