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The deliberations of the agency took place several months before and after the entry into office of Mr. Trump.
Fearing a public controversy that could harm the government's financial interests, the agency urged Trump to divest himself of his financial interests in the property. at a meeting with his eldest sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, on January 31, 2017, according to the report. After his election, Mr. Trump entrusted them with the management of the company.
At this meeting, the contracting officer "had insisted on getting the divestment", but he had not insisted, because he did not believe that the new chairman The interest for the property, a historic building known as the Old Post Office, has created a problem constituting a breach of the lease, the report says.
Two months later, the contracting officer, Kevin Terry, issued a certificate attesting that the Trump Organization fully complied with the terms of the lease and the contract was "valid and in force". Although Mr. Terry knew that the constitutional question was open, "nevertheless, he did not qualify his certification," according to the report.
Agency officials acknowledged that they might be forced to review the lease, depending on the court's decision. Inspector General Carol F. Ochoa, however, said that the agency had already agreed with the Trump Organization that President Trump's interests did not violate the wording of the lease against profits to elected officials. The report identified this as a "problem".
He recommended to the attorneys of the agency to carry out a "formal legal examination" of the relationship between the prohibition of emoluments and the activities of the agency.
In his response to the report, Jack St. John, the General Counsel of the General Service Administration, said he was "satisfied" that the investigation had not been completed. revealed no evidence of political interference in the decision-making process of the agency.
"In fact, your office has found no undue influence, pressure, or unjustified involvement of any kind, including the president's office," he writes in response to the inspector General.
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