Donald is definitely gonna have trouble adjusting to prison, where they will shove his food tray trough the grub hole in the cell door.
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Trump's Washington hotel echoes to silence of missing Maga crowd | Washington DC | The Guardian
Trump's Washington hotel echoes to silence of missing Maga crowd
Once the hub of Trump World in the US capital, with the former president gone it is in danger of becoming a white elephant
Clobbered first by the coronavirus pandemic, then by its owner’s election defeat, the
Trump International Hotel in Washington is reeling from a huge loss of income and prestige. For critics of the former US president, it is welcome proof of how quickly the city is moving on without him.
“It used to be the hub of Trump World but I can’t imagine who goes there now,” said
Sally Quinn, a local author and journalist. “We don’t even have tourists yet in Washington. I can’t imagine most people staying there when they come. I don’t know anybody who goes there or has gone there.”
The hotel
opened amid protests in the historic Old Post Office building on Pennsylvania Avenue, between the White House and US Capitol building, in September 2016 as Trump campaigned for the presidency.
For four years its opulent lobby thronged with diplomats, lobbyists and Trump family members. It was one of the few places in the US capital where “Make America great again” hats were bountiful. But one recent afternoon it seemed more reminiscent of the haunted hotel in Stanley Kubrick’s film
The Shining.
Steel barriers surrounded the magnificent facade with its five US flags and statue of first postmaster general
Benjamin Franklin. A black-coated porter explained that, due to coronavirus restrictions, only people invited by guests are allowed in. When the Guardian called the front desk, a man who identified himself as the manager said, “I’d rather not comment. Thank you for your call,” then hung up.
The hotel in Washington
made just $15.1m in revenue last year, a drop of more than 60% from the year before. Then came Trump’s election loss and impeachment for inciting a deadly insurrection a short distance away at the US Capitol on 6 January, inflicting huge reputational damage.
On 20 January, Trump boarded the Marine One helicopter to start a new post-presidential life at his luxury Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, depriving the hotel of one of its biggest draws. A week later,
the New York Times reported that the lobby was largely vacant and the waiters and staff members outnumbered the customers.
There was little mourning in Washington itself, where Joe Biden secured 92% of the vote compared with Trump’s 5%. Beyond official duties, the 45th president was rarely seen around the city, hardly ever visiting museums or theatres and
only ever dining out at the Trump hotel itself.
Last month
the Washingtonian reported that table 72 in a round booth at the hotel’s steakhouse was perpetually reserved for the president in case he decided to visit on the spur of the moment. The magazine also said it obtained a “Standard Operating Procedure” document for staff to follow whenever Trump arrived.
“As soon as Trump was seated, the server had to ‘discreetly present’ a mini bottle of Purell hand sanitizer. (This applied long before Covid, mind you.),” it reported. “Next, cue dialogue: ‘Good (time of day) Mr President. Would you like your Diet Coke with or without ice?’ the server was instructed to recite.
“A polished tray with chilled bottles and highball glasses was already prepared for either response. Directions for pouring the soda were detailed in a process no fewer than seven steps long – and illustrated with four photo exhibits. The beverage had to be opened in front of the germophobe commander in chief, ‘never beforehand’.
Last month
the Washingtonian reported that table 72 in a round booth at the hotel’s steakhouse was perpetually reserved for the president in case he decided to visit on the spur of the moment. The magazine also said it obtained a “Standard Operating Procedure” document for staff to follow whenever Trump arrived.
“As soon as Trump was seated, the server had to ‘discreetly present’ a mini bottle of Purell hand sanitizer. (This applied long before Covid, mind you.),” it reported. “Next, cue dialogue: ‘Good (time of day) Mr President. Would you like your Diet Coke with or without ice?’ the server was instructed to recite.
“A polished tray with chilled bottles and highball glasses was already prepared for either response. Directions for pouring the soda were detailed in a process no fewer than seven steps long – and illustrated with four photo exhibits. The beverage had to be opened in front of the germophobe commander in chief, ‘never beforehand’.
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He'll have them dancing on the courthouse steps during his trial before he's done using them.
