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The tower of the Trump International Hotel in Washington, DC, on July 26, 2018. (Astrid Riecken / For the Washington Post)
A group of district residents is trying to stripping the Trump International Hotel of its liquor license arguing that its owner – the president – is not "good character" hit at a roadblock Wednesday when the DC Liquor Control Committee has refused to review the case.
The Commission cited a technical point, noting that the character of liquor licensees is not examined at will, but when liquor permits are issued, transferred or renewed. The five board members on Wednesday did not rule on the merits of the complaint, suggesting that Trump is violating the developing country law that license applicants must be "reputable and generally able to obtain a permit ".
"It is important to note that all liquor license holders in the District of Columbia are required to apply for renewal of their licenses by March 31, 2019," said President Donovan Anderson. their complaint again next year.
But Joshua Levy, the lawyer who filed suit on behalf of seven residents – three ministers, two retired judges and two rabbis – said the group was not planning to wait for the year. next and submit a request to the Board to reconsider its decision.
"The facts are so convincing right now," Levy said following the decision. "The council has a duty to act now."
Anderson said the board had conducted a regulatory inspection of the Trump Hotel following the complaint and found an alleged sale to a minor, which Anderson says has no bearing on the complaint.
The residents' complaint described what Levy described as overwhelming evidence that Trump was "lacking in character," including charges of sexual misconduct, entrepreneurs who say Trump's companies did not pay them, and lies and deception. .
The complaint argues that, even though the President has entrusted his business assets, including the hotel, to a revocable trust, he remains the "real and true" owner of the hotel and the holder of his liquor license. Press reports have noted that Trump can withdraw money from the trust, which is controlled by his adult sons.
The group behind the complaint, titled "Make Integrity Great Again," is backed by Jerry Hirsch, Arizona Republican who practiced law and ran real estate and technology companies before becoming a philanthropist.
Hirsch said in a statement Wednesday that he found "surprising and unfortunate" that the board of directors decided the complaint on a technical problem.
"Surprising because the board waited nearly three months, while plaintiffs concentrated their research efforts, their time and energy on filing three substantial amendments, before the board announced their procedural decision" . "Unfortunately, because they have spoken out on the merits, we are convinced that the evidence was so overwhelming that a show cause hearing would have been scheduled. Their tightly framed decision avoided the merits and thus rendered the residents of the capital a disservice. I can only hope that they reconsider in the interest of the laws and citizens that they serve. "
Patricia Tang, director of marketing sales at Trump International Hotel, declined to comment on the complaint.
Hirsch's group circulated a small request for support from the Democratic majority residents, where Trump received 4% of the votes against Hillary Clinton's 91% in the 2016 presidential competition. A Washington Post poll in June 2017, just six months after the start of Trump's presidency, revealed that one-third of DC residents had participated in a rally or march to protest President Trump or his policy.
A survey of 969 residents of Change Research on September 7 and 8 showed that more than 90 percent of respondents believe that Trump does not have the "good character" required by law to obtain a liquor license.
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